I'll Always Be Here
by I am a Ridaa
Summary: (SEQUEL to "I'll Be Your Guide") After Verge finally discovered her true self and found her family, she's ready to resume her duties as Penn's part-time fairy guide and all-time best friend. However, it is still a challenge for her to keep it up and still get used to the world she once lost. (OC insert story)
1. A Promise

**Prologue: A Promise**

* * *

_Divergent was sad. _

_After exactly two years of her arriving in the human world, she couldn't help but feel anything but so. She stared at her reflection in her best friend's bathroom mirror now: pale skin, brown hair that she tied up in pigtails, blue eyes, _pointy ears, and golden wings behind her back. _On top of it all, she was in her small fairy size._

_She was no human, as much as she tried to hide it._

_Verge did a backflip and returned to human size, sighing as she exited the bathroom. She reached a normal, nine-year old height as a regular human, but she still forgot that human children had stools to stand on when they couldn't reach something, and therefore relied on her magic. She flew to the higher cupboards of the Zero family's kitchen, retrieved a box of cereal and a carton of milk from the fridge, and proceeded to pour herself some breakfast before she picked at it with a fork. Choco Chuck smiled at her from the cereal box._

"_Oh preternatural cartoon elephant," she sighed. "At least you know your purpose." She somehow managed to shove a forkful of choco trunks into her mouth._

_Awoken by the apparent noise Verge made, ten-year old, young Penn Zero descended from the stairs, rubbing his eyes as he blinked at the fairy on the counter. He frowned at the sight, but although it was morning, he suspected it was best not to call her out or tell her to hide._

"_Verge?" he asked, approaching the fairy who didn't even bother to sit on a chair, and was merely flying to reach the counter. "What's wrong?"_

"_Nothing," Verge replied flatly, setting down her bowl and bringing it to the couch._

_Penn followed her as they both sat down together. He tried to look into her eyes but her head was hung too low. "Come on. I hate seeing you so sad." It was true. In the four years they've been friends, there was nothing sadder for him but to know Verge, who was usually a bundle full of joy, so down in the dumps._

_The golden-winged fairy child only sighed again for the nth time. "It's been a year now, Zero…will I ever find my family?"_

_She finally looked at the boy, and Penn was surprised. His heart wrenched at how much despair the girl's blue orbs held, how much hopelessness they seemed to have. He always got this feeling whenever Verge was sad, but he could tell now that it was just terrible. She was truly feeling lost._

_Penn knew he had to do something. So he jumped off the couch and began to carry Verge bridal style._

_The brunette was confused. "Zero—"_

_The redhead then proceeded to throw her up in the air. Verge only laughed and went along with it. She didn't even try to fly and tried to tuck in her big wings. "Zero! What are you—"_

"_I'm getting the depression outta ya!" he joked, stopping to shake her once before throwing her again. He began to talk in a deep voice. "O, great spirits, cast out the demons!"_

"_Zero! Penn!"_

"_DO NOT BESMIRCH THIS FAIR MAIDEN!"_

_Verge was laughing now, and what a melodious laugh it was. Opposite to seeing her sad, he loved to hear her cheerful giggle sound out through the house, as the whole room seemed to light up when her face did. Her smile was like his sun, warming his heart and giving him a reason to laugh as well._

"_Am I that light?!"_

"_You're actually pretty heavy!"_

"_HOW DARE YOU?" Though she still laughed._

_After a few more throws in the air, Verge did a backflip, making her size smaller, and she found herself accidentally landing in Penn's fluffy red hair._

"_Oops! Sorry!"_

_Penn had to laugh. "Get outta there!"_

"_But it's so cozy here!"_

"_What?! How!"_

"_You're more hair than head! No wonder it's bigger than your brain!"  
_

"_HEY!"_

_Verge's tiny head popped out of the strands and she began to laugh more. Penn couldn't help but continue. It was their silly times likes these that just made life worth living._

_Suddenly, they hard a flash, and looked up to see Vonnie and Brock looming over them, a camera in Vonnie's hand and a big grin on both of the parents' faces. "That's a keeper!" Brock declared._

"_You guys are _so cute!" _Vonnie squealed._

_Verge didn't see Penn blush. "Mooooom…"_

_The fairy ruffled the strands of hair on Penn's head that she could reach. "It's true! You're adorable."_

_Smirking, Penn tried to poke her tiny body. "No, _you're _adorable!"_

"_OW! My eye!"_

"_OH I'M SORRY did I—'_

_"Kidding!"_

"_You have a sense of humor?!"_

"_Hawk you!"_

_The family began to laugh._

* * *

~Four years later~

Verge _did _find her biological family. The night before had been one of the happiest she'd had in a long time. Holding her new MUHU now would always remind her of such. But four years ago, she never forgot the promise she made to herself.

As long as she lived, she would never allow anything to harm Penn Zero.

She vowed to be the reason he smiled.

* * *

_(Penn: Wherever good is threatened, heroes rise to the challenge and always save the day!_

…_Except when they don't._

_And that's when I go to work_

_I zap into dimensions everyday, it's my job_

_Be a hero, save the world, and make things right_

_Kung-fu moles, rescue trolls, punch a zombie, score a goal!_

_I'm a robot, I'm a rabbit, I'm a knight_

_[Stretching, swinging, spying, flying, flipping, monster-kicking]_

_Boone, Verge, and Sashi always sticking by my side!_

_No villain's gonna stop…_

_[Penn Zero! Part-time hero!]_

_[Penn Zero! Part-time hero!]_

_[Penn Zero! Part-time hero!]_

_Penn Zero! Part-time hero!)_

* * *

**HELLOOOOOO RIDAA IS BACK, HAS GRADUATED HIGH SCHOOL WITH HONORS, AND CAN FINALLY WORK ON THE SEQUEL A LOT OF PEOPLE WERE ASKING FOR!**

**I know, I know, it's been nearly four years and I truly am sorry. I won't be surprised if no one will even read this sequel! I didn't even TRY making it when season 2 came out. I just genuinely lost interest. Heck, the prologue isn't even as long as my first prologue.**

**But I swear with all my heart I HAVE RETURNED and I'm going to TRY AND BE COMMITTED HAHA**

**Just to answer a few quetions some of you may have…**

**No, Verge doesn't have any new designs.**

**No, I'm not going to try drawing her designs in each world like I did before – though maybe if I have more time I will actually continue where I left off (I never did get to finish season 1 drawings on my deviantart).**

**No, I can't promise to stay committed because I'm approaching college and I'm going to be job-hunting this summer. Plus, I have to start watching all the episodes of Season 2 before I finally get a proper story in my head. Though, don't worry, I'm already thinking of something.**

**Yes, I will stay true to my usual pace and I will attempt to follow every line by paying attention to each episode, follow each scene, and insert Verge in it! **

**Yes, I also have some ideas for special episodes, and I might need help in some of them! Depends if I have enough readers and if this story ends up successful.**

**PLEASE GIVE ME INSPIRATION TO CONTINUE! Again, really hope I satisfy you guys. Hope my writing is still good and I pray I can make up for four years of waiting :') Much love to you all! Thank you ridaas for your patience!**

**-Ridaa**


	2. The Pirates, The Parrot, The Puzzles etc

**Episode 1: The Pirates, The Parrot, The Puzzles, and the Talking Boats**

* * *

**EPISODE 1! Hope it's good enough for ya'll! I edited some stuff again to fit in with Verge being inserted in the story. Really hope this makes up for the lost time!**

**Also, there was absolutely no proof-reading put into this (yet, at least) so please bear with me! And please read the note at the end!**

* * *

"Not long ago, two heroes fought to save Earth."

"_Most Dangerous World Imaginable is pushing in! It's too strong! I cannot close portal!"_

"_Vonnie, we have to close it from our side!"_

"_Phyllis!"_

"_It's the only way to keep Penn safe! He'll understand."_

"_Take care of him Phyllis."_

"To save world from evil energy, they trap themselves in a lost dimension. Broken shards from fabric of Most Dangerous World Imaginable were scattered across time and space. _Until yesterday. _See? It's happy story. Anyway, that kid over there having bad hair day? _That _is their son. And that fairy with him? His fairy guide."

"_Whoa, what is this—ah!"_

"Penn and Verge return home with shard and for fourty two hour they have remained patient while Phyllis attempt to—"

"_Phyllis, does it work?"_

"…while Phyllis _attempt _to…"

"_Phyllis, stop narrating! Can you locate my parents? Am I gonna get them back? I need to know now! NOW-NOW-NOW-NOW-NOW-NOW-NOW—"_

"NO! It takes three shards to triangulate Most Dangerous World Imaginable. So I am needing two more."

"_Two more?!"_

"Yup, says right here on page 8," Boone, part-time Wiseman and Penn's best friend, turned the page of Penn's comic book, and pointed out the detail.

Divergent, the part-time fairy guide and Penn's oldest best friend, frowned as she flapped her golden wings and gazed down at her own copy. "This was strangely unnecessary. How did you do this overnight?"

Phyllis, the narrator and owner of the Odyssey, smirked at the fairy as she looked up from the table she was sitting behind. A large tarpaulin with her picture and the words "Phyllis-con" was placed behind her. "Phyllis don't tell you everything." Verge smirked back.

"How am I gonna find two more shards in the _infinite _multi-verse?!" Penn, the hero of our story, said in exasperation. Sashi, his part-time sidekick frowned as well. "Verge didn't need three shards to finally see her world!"

"_Ahem."_

"I-it's not that I'm not happy for you, again, it's just that I find this a tad unfair."

"There are plenty of shards that have broken from Most Dangerous World Imaginable" Phyllis explained. "The shards are also powerful enough to serve as key to any lost dimension – a lost dimension such as Fairy World."

Verge flapped her wings proudly.

"Relax," Phyllis continued. "I am adjusting your MUHU to detect when you are in world with shard. But, MUHU is not ready so, you go to work as normal."

Penn sighed and pinched his notes in frustration. "Yeah, okay! Uh, sure, fine! It'll be normal. But I want to save my parents ASAP!" He hit the comic book for emphasis and set it down on Phyllis' table. "Don't stop to make any more professional-looking comic books, okay?!"

"Uh-oh," Verge did a backflip, making her smaller as she flew to perch in Penn's hair, like she liked to do. "Someone's grumpy."

Penn sighed again. "I'm sorry. I—"

"Say no more." Verge bent forward from his hair and Penn looked up at her with his eyes. "I completely understand."

Looking into her tiny, sympathetic eyes, the redhead smiled softly and patted the brunette on her tiny head, gently ruffling her pigtails. "At least one of us has their problem solved. A princess only deserves the best."

Verge pouted. Penn chuckled.

Everyone got on the platform, Phyllis inputted the new dimension's algorithm, and said her usual words: "Good luck!"

* * *

As the heroes recovered from the zap and arrived in their new world, Verge opened her eyes to see a wide ocean. She stared at her new clothes and noticed she was wearing a long blue coat and a white shirt underneath with a cravat. She also wore a red skirt and brown boots like usual, but also had a tiny pirate hat atop her head. She beamed at herself, knowing right away that they were in a pirate world. She hovered beside Penn, who also admired himself in his new pirate gear.

"W-whoa-ho-ho! Look at this! Nice threads!" He looked to his right. "Not looking so bad there, Verge!"

"Thanks Zero!" she chirped. "You're looking unusual today too."

He laughed as he ran to stand on the mast, holding onto the rope as he also gazed at the ocean. "Check out this view!"

"We're back to work!" Verge cheered, pumping her fist. "And it feels good!"

Penn grinned. "

A green parrot with blue-rimmed glasses flew to perch on Penn's shoulder. He and the fairy immediately knew it was as they both smirked. "Nice beak," the redhead joked.

"_Rah!" _Sashi the parrot screeched, flying off. _"Save your insults! Save your insults!"_

"Oof, that is annoying," Penn huffed, straightening his hat. "Once would've done the trick, Sash."

"I still think you're cute!" Verge squealed, turning smaller as she went to take Sashi's head in her arms and nuzzle her. The parrot rolled its eyes but let the fairy be.

"Now we just have to find Boone," Penn put a hand over his eyes and scanned the area. "He's out there somewhere…"

"Nope!" Boone's voice called out. "Down here, buddy! I'm the boat…and a whale."

Verge flew away from Sashi and was surprised to find that the whole boat they were on was indeed fact a whale. Boone the Whale Boat to be precise. His fins rowed through the water as he kept the pirate ship moving.

The fairy's eyes twinkled. "That…is _so awesome! _How are you working?"

"Dunno!" the Wiseman Boat replied, his eyes half-lidded. "But it feels good."

"Ha! Well, shiver my timbers!" Penn laughed, sliding off the mast and back to the main deck. "I guess boats are alive in this world." He stomped on the deck twice as Sashi and Verge went to stand on it as well. "Oh, multi-verse, what will you come up next? Check the Specs, Sash!"

"_Rah! Check the Specs, Sash! Check the Specs, Sash!" _Even Verge jumped a bit beside her when Sashi screeched. The parrot was not too fond of her new form herself as she sighed. "I'm annoying."

Verge patted her wing gently. "You're adorable," she whispered.

Sashi just sighed once more and checked her Specs. "You are a good pirate. You must recover a treasure map from the fearsome pirate, Woodbeard, then find the treasure and get it safely away from him. _WAH! Away from him, away from him!"_

"Sounds simple enough!" Verge piped. She spoke as Boone chuckled, making the boat move and make her lose her balance.

"She sounds like a parrot!" he guffawed.

"_WAH! Sounds like a parrot, sounds like a parrot!"_

Verge frowned, as she flew upwards. "We've established that, Boone!"

"_RAH! We've established that, Boone! We've established that, Boone!"_

The whole boat shook as Boone laughed harder. Penn too began to lose his balance as the ground rumbled, and before they knew it, he was shot into the air by the water from Boone's whale blowhole. Verge screamed, as she didn't see it coming herself, and she and Penn rode the water until it disappeared. The two fell back onto the deck with a thud.

"Oh no!" Verge shook a bit, getting the water off, but she looked behind to find her golden wings drooping. "Boone, you got me wet!"

"Oops!" Boone blushed a bit, suddenly feeling apologetic. "Sorry, Vergie. New whale form, ya know?"

Penn picked the fairy up and placed her on his shoulder. "You can stay here for now."

"_WAH! Here for now! Here for now!" _Sashi, unaffected by the water as she flew away in time, perched on a barrel of apple cide, a smug look on her beak.

"Hey Sash, maybe with the bird's eye view, you can spot Woodbeard's ship!" Penn noted, standing up. He closed one eye and began talking in a pirate voice. _"The sooner we be findin' ye ol' treasure, the sooner I be savin' me parents!"_

"What," Verge said blankly.

Sashi deadpanned at him. "You're not gonna talk like that the whole time, are you?"

Penn straightened and crossed his arms. "Well no, I don't have to, but I thought it might be fun. I don't know why it's okay for you to talk like a parrot and I can't talk like a pirate… Pirate and parrot are practically the same word."

"I'm sure we'll have plenty of time having fun here," Verge said, patting the space beside here, aka his shoulder. "Right now, let's do what we do best!" She pointed upwards. "Look! Sashi's already on the case."

"Rippen and Larry close ahead!" she called out. "We can sneak up from behind!

"Boone dive!" The talking whale boat began to swim underwater and head towards where the villains were.

Verge pointed at the rope above her. Penn nodded and swam towards it. As Boone neared the surface, they overheard Rippen's voice. "But, we have the treasure map, and therefore the advantage."

Boone leaped out from the water, and Penn swung off the sail mast. "Hahaha! You never have the advantage! Because you know what, you're you!"

He dropped onto Larry's deck and Rippen immediately started slashing his sword at him. Verge, who was still wet, yelped as she began to hide underneath Penn's hat.

Penn tried to get back on the boat and thanks to Rippen throwing his sword, he managed to get back onboard.

"I'll be taking your map and whatever self-respect you might have!" Penn declared, holding Rippen's belt up.

Verge peeked from the hat and giggled as the villain's pants fell down to his ankles. "Nice," she praised, and Penn gave her a tiny fist bump. He laughed cockily at his victory.

But then the sea began to rumble once more, and it wasn't from Boone's laughter. Another boat that seemed to be a dolphin leapt out from the water. As it suspended midair, a pirate also swung down on their own rope and swapped the map Penn had with another piece of paper.

"Hey!" he shouted. But the pirate landed on their boat safely and began to sail away.

"Huh, let's see what it says here," Penn murmured, holding the paper. "'Thanks for the map, and your belt. Sincerely, a better pirate'?" As if on cue, just like Rippen's situation, Penn's pants fell off. "O-kay." He laughed nervously to himself before throwing the paper onto the deck in annoyance.

"They got you good," Verge started.

"Not a word. Boone! After that apparently much better pirate! _Go, go, go!"_

And so Boone flipped his fins as fast as he could. Larry also began swimming after the pirates, and soon they started a wild chase. Verge held onto Penn's hair for deal life, careful not to let go, and their boat began to sing along the way.

"_I'm a whale-faced boat and I'm floatin' free on this splishy splashy sea_

_And I chew on krill which is gross and smells_

_I'm not all for all to see_

_Splishy dishy wishy_

_And a yo-ho fiddly-fee_

_I'm the one that wrote this sea shanty_

_A shanty wrote for ye_

_We're hot on the tail of a scurvy ship_

_Where they're drivin' we can't tell_

_But we gotta get back the treasure map_

_So the multi-verse stay well_

_Splishy dishy wishy_

_Yo-ho-ho!  
Splishy dishy splooshy_

_Yaaar!_

_Splishy dishy yo-ho-ho-ho!_

"Why," Verge deadpanned.

"_WAH! Oh no! Oh no!" _Sashi screeched. _"Waterfall! Waterfall! YAH! Waterfall! Waterfall!"_

Sure enough, the pirates were heading straight for a giant waterfall and were about to fall off any moment.

"_Did somebody say waterfa—AHHH!" _The other pirate's dolphin boat began to shriek as she found herself at the edge, but Boone managed to bite her tail and hold her back in time.

"This is why boats should always brush and floss!" He struggled to pull the giant dolphin back, and Verge couldn't help thinking if her tail was starting to hurt.

"Verge! Can't you use your dust?" Penn shouted.

"Still wet!"

"Woodbeard's coming right for us!"

"Um…_SQUAWK! SQUAWK!"_

"What."

"What?" Sashi raised an eyebrow at her.

Verge shrugged as she settled on Penn's hat. She pointed upwards, and the two saw a flock of parrots heading their way. "Get them here, Sash!"

The part-time sidekick flew up and managed to communicate with the birds. They somehow managed to distract Larry, causing him to swim off the edge of the waterfall.

"_Larry, NO!"_

"_Last one in's a rotten shark butt!"_

"Yes!" Verge cheered.

This gave Boone enough time to get both him and the dolphin boat on safe waters. He panted as he finally let go of the other boat's tail. Penn, meanwhile, had other matters to attend to, and he dropped down and landed on the other boat. He pointed upwards at the crow's nest in anger.

"Come down and show thy cowardly face, you—"

"Beautiful lady?"

The pirate that stole the map finally revealed their face, and to everyone's surprise, it was a girl. A brown-skinned, dashing woman with a smile that made Penn blush. "Oh, boy," Verge sighed. "Remember when I said Penn falls for every girl in every dimension?" She whispered this to Sashi, and the parrot only looked annoyed as well.

Penn laughed nervously as he backed away. "No, no…I-I wasn't gonna say that."

"Because a pirate can't be female?" The woman continued to taunt him, moving closer to Penn.

"No! No, no, pirates can be females! Some of my best friends are lady…pirates!" His back hit the ship's wall, and he smiled awkwardly as the female pirate glared. "Um…this is Verge!" He pointed upwards to his hat, where the tiny fairy peaked from the flaps and she waved a bit.

But the pirate's gaze was still focused on him. Penn's lips quivered a bit…

Until the girl giggled. "I'm just messing with you! Thank you _so _much for saving our lives! We owe you! Big time!" She bowed her head a bit and Verge scoffed. "I'm Maria, and this is my boat, Maria."

"You both have the same name," Boone said, confused.

Boat Maria nodded. "Mm-hmm. Can you say confusing much?"

"_Confusing much! Confusing much!" _Sashi shrieked on Penn's shoulder. _"AAH!"_

"Oi," Verge sighed again.

Pirate Maria held a rolled up piece of paper. "The map's all yours!" She handed it to Penn. "I always thought it was cool to break the law but the way you guys chased us down and rescued us, _I _am really impressed! You have my respect sir!" She held out her hand and the redhead pirate shook it willingly.

"Do you now?" The fairy on his head squinted her blue eyes.

"From now on, I vow to be like _you _and fight on the side of good."

Penn apparently was still blushing, but he lifted his head in pride and crossed his arms. "Well, honestly, I'm glad I could just be an inspiration to ya."

Both Sashi and Verge rolled their eyes.

"_With your new attitude, ye won't go far!" _Penn used the funny pirate voice once again, and Verge yelped as he took his hat off, holding onto it once more. Penn laughed awkwardly as no one else laughed with him. "Heh, it's just pirate talk…"

"Can we go back on Boone now?" the fairy said impatiently, hanging from the hat.

"Whoops," Penn quickly adjusted his hat on his head and together with Sashi began to climb back on his own boat.

"I'll do my best to live up to your high standard!" Pirate Maria waved at the heroes as her boat Maria swam away.

"You guys are killin' it!" the dolphin boat cheered. "Especially the whale boat! You make it work from port to starboard, honey! Mm, mm, mm!"

If boats could blush, Boone certainly did. Verge chuckled a bit.

Penn sighed in satisfaction this time. "Feels good to make a difference, right gang?"

"I don't think we actually made an impact on her," Verge muttered.

But her friend ignored her and began to unroll the paper Maria gave. "Now, let's find that treasure so we can get home—_What?!"_

The fairy on his head peeked and was shocked to find they didn't at all have the map. "What the dust?"

"She switched the treasure map for an ad for eyebrow enhancement! I don't need eyebrow enhancement! My eyebrows are one of my best features!"

"Really?" Verge questioned. "Thought it was the hair."

"_Not the point, Verge."_

Sashi glared towards the direction the Marias left. "She's going _down."_

"Okay, let's settle this with calmness," The fairy knocked on Penn's forehead. "Let's not use violence, though it might be a good idea to use brute force."

Penn raised an eyebrow. "Since when were you okay with brute force?"

"Let's go after Maria and steal the map back!"

"Alright!" Penn pumped his fist in the air. "Boone!"

"_Dive!" _The whale boat cheered as he took to the underwaters again.

'_Not again,' _the fairy thought grumpily.

This time, Boone found it easier to swim with the waterfall than fall off of it. As he resurfaced, Sashi already managed to get the map.

"Nice!" Verge cheered. But as Penn retrieved what she stole, they realized it was only a part of what they needed.

Boat and Pirate Maria resurfaced from the water before them.

"Well!" Penn said, feeling cocky as he held up the paper. "Well, well, well." Pirate Maria did not look happy. The boats began to swim in circles. "Guess you can't find the treasure without half a map. Advantage: good guys."

"Uh, that doesn't make sense!" Pirate Maria brandished her rolled up half. _"You_ can't find it with half a map either!"

"Who is and who isn't making sense isn't important. I've got one X and two riddles on my half of the map."

"And _I_ have two Xs and one riddle!"

"And _I _have it going on!" Boat Maria seemed to eye Boone with a smile. "How you doin', Whale Boat? How you doin'?"

"Anyone else think this is weird?" Verge whispered as she made her way off Penn's shoulder and stood beside Sashi on the boat's rail.

"Now, look, I think we should team up, okay?" Penn persuaded. "We can split the treasure!"

Sashi did her best to talk with her beak closed. _"Penn, what are you doing? We can't trust a pirate! Rah! Can't trust a pirate! Can't trust a pirate!"_

"_But aren't we pirates too?" _Verge whispered back, her mouth also pinched into a smile.

Boone also replied in the same manner. _"Technically, but remember Phyllis' pirate song? Yo-ho-ho! Ya-ha-ha! Never trust a pirate or I'll punch you in the jaw!"_

"_But we are also pirates!"_

"_We're good pirates," _Penn assured, also forcing a smile like his teammates. _"And yes, I'm well aware of the pirate song. But I can handle Maria."_

Pirate Maria seemed to look at them mockingly as she too, smiled and spoke at the same time. _"You can definitely _not _handle me."_

"_Look lady, we just wanna go home!" _Verge complained.

"_Chill out, Pirate Fairy. You've got yourselves a deal!"_

With this, Penn smiled. "Finally," Verge crossed her arms. She did a backflip and returned to human size. "Let's get this over with."

The boats then found a place to float while Pirate Maria hopped aboard Boone and together with Penn, put the map together. Verge held up some scotch tape and it was as good as new. Penn frowned. "Where did you…" The fairy opened her mouth but he held up a hand. "Ah-ah. You don't tell us everything."

The first X seemed to glow as a picture of a talking fish ("What?" Verge scratched her head. Sashi was perched on her shoulder as she shrugged.) began to speak out their first clue. "Carefully choose your path before you stride. Let the first of these words serve as your guide!" It laughed as the heroes eyed the picture on the map.

"That place looks familiar," Sashi noted. "I saw that by the waterfall!"

"Then that's where we're headed!" Penn declared.

The heroes set off. Verge constantly kept trying to flap her wings but they were still too damp. "If we keep popping up from the water and surprising people for no reason, I'm never gonna get flying again." One of the fairy's pet peeves was getting her wings wet, for all she could do now was sit on the apple cider barrel with her legs crossed and mouth pouted.

"Aw, cheer up, Verge," Penn said. "You've always liked solving puzzles and solving mysteries. This treasure hunt will make you feel better."

"Well, it will, so long as Miss Two-Faced over there doesn't come up with any more tricks."

With that, Pirate Maria only winked.

The boats arrived at their destination, and soon they entered the cave on the map. Boone looked worried, but Penn, Verge, and Maria climbed up the cave's stairs in determination. They lead to a floor with various letters on it. On the other side of the floor, a big treasure chest sat upon a high platform.

"Huh," Penn wondered. "Letters all over the ground." Pirate Maria began to take a step forward, but Penn held her back. "Hold on, wait! The clue says to be careful."

Maria was still very stubborn. "I've never been afraid of letters and I'm not going to start now—"

Just as she spoke, the ground gave in underneath her and she began to fall. "Zero!" Verge cried, as he failed to catch her. The fairy reached out instead, and managed to grab Maria's wrist before she fell into a lake of hungry fish creatures with sharp teeth. Their jaws snapped, as if they had been hoping she would fall.

Penn helped Verge, pulled Maria up, and carried the pirate bridal style. Maria hung onto his neck, looking bewildered. "Okay, letters are terrifying."

"Tell me about it," Verge joked.

Her redhead friend, however, wasn't paying attention, as he only seemed to smile at Maria in his arms. The female pirate looked suspicious. "Uhh, if you can stop holding me in your arms now…"

Penn blushed for the nth time today. "What?" He looked around and set her down, chuckling nervously. "Weird! Y-you know I didn't- I didn't even notice." He continued to laugh like an idiot.

Verge coughed. "Smooth."

Penn just grinned. He walked towards Maria. "All we gotta do is spell the letters of the first word of the clue: Careful—"

Before he could even finish the word, the ground gave in beneath him as well, and he shouted out as he fell. "Maria!" Verge shouted this time.

The female pirate was right ahead of him, and saved Penn in the exact way he had saved her. One of the creatures poked its snout out from the hole in the ground, but Maria kicked it back. "Hawks," Verge murmured.

Penn decided to take advantage of the situation. _"Now, _who's holding who in whom's—whoa!" Maria let go of him before he could finish.

"Maybe we're thinking about the riddle too literally," she pondered. Sashi flew to sit on Penn's shoulder. "We need to think about this with a completely blank mind…"

"Where are we gonna get one of those?" Verge crossed her arms.

Boone gave a serious look from his area. "I'll do it!" he declared with determination.

"That'll do I guess," Sashi joked, turning to Verge.

Penn held out the map to his eye level. Boone smiled. "Okay. Going blaaaaaaaank…now! Carefully choose your path before you stride…let the first of these words serve as your guide…" A blank, dumb-stricken look was plastered on his face for quite a while.

Suddenly, Boone chuckled. "Okay, that's enough Disco Letter Monkey. Hahahaha!" Penn, Verge, Sashi, and Maria exchanged looks with one another. "Woohoo! Go go! Disco! Monkeh! Yeah!" He seemed to be dancing a bit in the water.

"This isn't working, is it," Verge deadpanned.

"'Fraid not," Penn replied.

"_Oh wait wait wait wait wait wait wait!" _Boone cried out. "The first of these words. You need to step on the first letter of each word! _Yeah baby!"_

Penn, Verge, and Maria grinned at each other.

"So we're just gonna ignore that he saw some monkeys," Boat Maria said grumpily.

Boone continued to dance but the pirates immediately began to hop to it. "Good job, Boonie!" Penn praised, once they got to the other side.

"_Ye-heah! Disco Letter Monkey!"_

"So we're all gonna act like this isn't happening," Boat Maria looked so done.

Verge smiled. "Just roll with it," she said.

"Okay."

Penn and Pirate Maria returned from the treasure chest with a shell in Penn's hand. "Is that what we came here for?"

"Apparently," Penn scratched the back of his head. "I'm not a fan of it either. Let's just move on to the next clue!"

"_No time to lose! No time to lose! RAH!"_ Sashi squawked.

They got on Boone and the two boats began to sail off. Verge, who took the map from Penn earlier, unrolled it again. The two now stood on the mast, balancing themselves. "Okay, next clue…"

The talking fish from earlier began to speak once more. "Welcome to clue number two - the puzzles are piling. If you get the picture, treasure mountain you'll be climbing!" The fish then began to cough unusually. "I'm sorry, can I get some hot tea?"

"Yeesh." Verge handed the map to Penn, who scanned it. The wind flew in their hair and the fairy slowly started to flap her wings. "Getting there."

"I've seen this place," Penn told her. They slid off the mast and joined Maria at the deck. "Let's head North!"

The map showed a pile of giant rocks in the shape of skulls, so that's where the heroes arrived at. The rocks, however, did look to be very high up so they had no choice but to climb, as it said so in the clue. Just looking at it made Penn tired.

"Uh, Verge? Sure your magic isn't working yet?"

"Nope," the fairy replied. She returned to human size and landed perfectly in Penn's hat. "Dunno when I'll be ready for this so, keep it up Cap'n!"

The redhead sighed, Maria shook her head, and together they began to climb the rocks. Penn grunted with each step. "Well, we should be able to make short work with these next two clues. I was, always good at puzzles, even when I was little."

"It's true, he's a master."

"Thank you Verge—What?!"

Once they reached the top, Penn, Verge, Sashi, and Maria were all horrified to find what seemed like a million puzzle pieces scattered out before them. Some skeletons and skulls were even littered around. Just looking at them made Verge feel dizzy. She felt faint and collapsed in Penn's hat. The pirates and the parrot still stood, their mouths agape, at the work they would need to complete.

"So perhaps we should start by finding the corner pieces?" Penn squeaked.

Sashi gave up and collapsed on the floor next to some puzzle pieces, fast asleep. Penn and Maria began to piece some pieces together for the next few minutes.

"Alright, we gotta be close to finishing this puzzle—_Oh no there is so much more puzzles!" _Penn could feel himself losing his temper as he kicked the ground and threw the skeleton beside him. "Stupid puzzle pieces! Stupid mission! Stupid puzzle mission!" He angrily took a puzzle piece and began chewing it ferociously.

This seemed to wake Verge up, as her blue eyes blinked. "Uhh, Zero…? You okay?"

He looked up, about to speak to Verge, but then saw Maria eyeing him. She blinked once, clearly questioning his sanity.

The part-time hero sighed as he stood. "I suppose it's fair to say I have a _slight _issue with being impatient," he admitted.

"_Slight?" _Verge scoffed. "Hey!" She tipped over when Penn nudged his hat.

"It's really hard to deal with sometimes," Penn moved away from Maria, rubbing his arm as he looked down sadly. "You wouldn't understand."

Verge returned to human size and patted Penn sympathetically. Even Sashi, who was standing a few feet away, looked saddened. They all knew what this was about.

But Maria didn't look judgemental, and also crossed her arms insecurely. "You might be surprised. We all have issues. I never told anyone this before, but…I used to be part of a pirate team. We tracked down a treasure chest full of valuable pirate trading cards, including a rookie Seaweed Nancy, mint condition! But when it came time to divide up the haul, they ditched me. And that was the last time I trusted a human. I trust talking boats but that's it."

Penn exchanged glances with Verge. "I promise I won't double-cross you." When Verge nudged him playfully, he laughed a bit. _"We _won't double-cross you. Not even for a Seaweed Nancy."

"You might not get the chance," Maria smiled. "Looks like we're going to be stuck on this mountain of puzzle pieces for the rest of our lives."

"Don't make it sound depressing," Verge huffed.

"No matter how you look at it, it's depressing."

"But it could be fun solving all these!"

"Please no," Penn deadpanned.

Verge leaned her head back, rolling her eyes. "Yeah, but sulking about it is not gonna—Hey! Look up there!"

Penn and Maria gazed upwards, and through the cloudy skies they saw a hole in the greyness: a branch from a tree poked out, as if calling out the pirates to notice it. "That's oddly conventional!" Verge pointed out.

"Mountain of puzzle pieces!" Penn snapped his fingers. "That's it! The clue said the puzzles are piling! We just need to pile them up!"

"That's still going to take a while!"

"Better than nothing, right Verge?"

"Yeah but why go through all the trouble when we can take the easy route?"

Before either of the two could reply, Verge's wings flapped behind her and she was lifted off the air. She circled above Penn and Maria, sprinkling her sparkling golden dust on them. The pirates soon found they too were floating. To Maria, this was new, and she gasped in surprise. Penn gasped for another reason as he straightened his body.

"Since when did you get you magic back?!"

Verge shrugged. "This time I'm not sure myself!"

The redhead rolled his cyan eyes. But still he smiled. "Let's go!"

The three, along with Sashi, flew up towards the hold in the sky. They landed safely on the branch, and were happy to see the second treasure chest waiting for them ahead. The four approached it, and the pirates opened it together.

"Okay, let's see here…" Penn reached into the box, pulled out the object inside, and their faces were replaced with looks of confusion yet again.

"A music stand…" Pirate Maria said.

"And, a note? 'Get in.'?"

Verge fluttered her wings. "At this point…"

"I don't see why not." He shrugged at Verge, as if reading her mind. He and Maria hopped in the chest, but nothing happened for a moment. Verge became smaller once more and hovered beside Sashi.

"Now what?" Maria questioned.

As she said that, the branch shook and quivered. The chest fell as the branch broke off the tree. The pirates screamed as they held onto the chest during their descent within the tree. "Zero! Maria!" Verge cried.

"Come on!" Sashi shouted. The two began to fly downwards until they saw Boone and Boat Maria.

"I still see them!" Verge said, flying faster to follow Penn and Pirate Maria.

"Boone! I'm guessing you're talking about monkeys again! Knock it off and catch Penn!"

This caught the Wiseman's attention as he saw the screaming pirates start to fall into the water. Boone jumped from the sea. "I got 'em, I got 'em!"

But the chest only punched a hole in Boone's head and the pirates fell into the whirlpool that somehow appeared beside Pirate Maria. Verge, who had managed to catch up with them, flew to hide in Penn's pirate bag just before the chest and the pirates disappeared underneath the sea.

She stayed inside before she was absolutely sure they were back somewhere dry. She peeked from the bag and saw Penn and Maria were still in the chest, floating aimlessly in what seemed to be a secret underwater area. "This is beautiful," Maria commented.

It was true. Verge saw some tiny geyser spouts coming out from the water, and the reflections from the small waterfalls looked very pretty. She could stare at it all day. But then she was shocked at the fact that Maria was moving closer to Penn and her best friend had his lips puckered.

Were they going to kiss?

For a split second Verge was horrified, but not before Maria spoke up. "You had some seaweed on your shoulder, it's gone. Why did you close your eyes?"

Penn looked flustered. "Oh, uh, just because, uh, I have a condition where my eyelids are heavy and weak and I don't know why I'm talking right now—"

"Look! That ride brought us to the last X on the map!"

"May I see?"

"Verge!" Penn was shocked when the fairy flew out from his pack, returned to human size, and squeezed between the two to hold the map for herself. "You followed?"

"Of course dum-dum!" Verge smiled her brightest smile. "Couldn't miss out on solving the last clue!"

The talking fish reappeared and spoke the third and final riddle. "Add up all your clues of which there are three. Try to see what's not there or all wet you will be!"

Verge rolled up the map, put it back in Penn's bag, and pointed straight ahead. "Look, dry land! And an X on the ground!"

"Nice!" Penn cheered.

The three got off the chest once they were on the sand. Verge noticed there were mini geysers that spouted out water, and the water reached high enough to let anyone get back above water. Penn examined the X beneath them.

"Huh, well, there's an X but, nothing else."

Once again, as he said that, the ground shook. Verge nearly lost her balance. _"This keeps happening today—Whoa!"_

The three found themselves flying upwards, and soon they noticed a giant clam appeared from underneath them and had now swallowed the three up. They sat on its tongue for a few good seconds before Penn began to turn red. "Wonderful! Stuck in a clam? What a waste of time! _Never get it right! Argh!"_

"Zero, calm down!"

He threw his bag down and the map fell out, along with the shell and the music stand. Both Maria and Verge looked, ready to get it, but that's when they noticed something that wasn't there before.

"Music notes?" Verge questioned.

Maria bent to pick up the map. "Hey! Your childish freak-out worked! There's hidden writing on the note!" She then picked up the shell. "I bet, we're supposed to play the shell like a musical instrument!"

Verge beamed. "Nice thinking!" She set up the stand and laid out the music sheet, set the shell in Penn's hands and forced him to stand up.

Penn eyed the shell before blowing into it once. "Let's see, I took piano for a short while." He cleared his throat and then began to play.

The clam shuddered for a few moments before finally spitting the three of them out. Once they were out, the giant clam also burped out the final treasure chest. "There it is!" Verge cheered, flying over.

"Ye-heah!" Penn celebrated as well, getting the chest. "We did it Verge, Maria! My impatience worked to our advantage and you put your trust issues behind you and pulled a sword on us. Whaaat!"

"Maria!" Verge gasped. Penn was about to brandish his sword but it seemed all he had was a backscratcher, which the female pirate broke. "How could you!"

"Sorry," Maria said, holding up her sword and Penn's. She didn't sound the least bit sorry. "I had to double-cross you before you double-cross me."

"But I'd never do that!" Penn protested. "I like you!" He realized what he'd said and tried to correct himself. "As a teammate!" But Verge still stared at him.

"Nice try," Maria smiled, picking up the chest and beginning to walk away. "But I invented the 'I like you as a teammate'—"

"Maria—" Verge began, but she never got to finish her sentence.

Rippen, much to everyone's surprise, popped out of the water and took the chest from the pirate. "I'll take that!"

Maria scowled and she brandished her sword. "How did you get down here?!" Penn ran forward, getting his sword back. Verge fluttered her wings angrily.

"Larry's been dumping me down whirlpools all day!" Rippen replied. "Luckily the last one sent me here!"

"For the love of seasons," Verge muttered.

"You'll never get out of here with that chest!" Maria thrust her sword out threateningly.

"Fine!" Rippen sneered. "I _wooooon't!" _A geyser shot him straight out of the cave and did indeed help him get away with the chest.

"Hawks!" Verge cursed. "What now?" Penn frowned, not sure himself.

"I'm sorry," This time, Maria did sound apologetic. "I messed this up."

"Hey, we can still fix this if we work together!" Penn protested. "We're a good team, you and me!"

"_Ahem."_

"Verge too!"

But Maria only frowned. "No, we're not." She stepped on a geyser.

"Aw, come _on!" _But the geyser shot Maria out as well. "Rippen will screw up! He's a terrible villain!"

"Don't break the streak, Zero," The redhead just sighed in exasperation."Penn…" Verge began, but even she didn't know what to say at this point. She crossed her arms and looked away. She'd been feeling uncomfortable ever since they met Maria, but she hadn't wanted to say anything.

Penn looked at her now and tried to approach her, placing a hand on his best friend's shoulder. "Let's do what we can to fix things now," he said gently. "That's what you always tell us, right?"

The fairy sighed. "Right."

Penn took another step, as if about to hug her, but yelped as he tripped over something. The two were surprised, and looked into the sand to see a glint. There was something buried there, and Verge pulled it out.

"A key!" Penn exclaimed. "That must be the key to the treasure chest! Rippen may have it but he can't get the treasure without this!"

"Let's send him a ransom!" Verge cried out. "Challenge him to a duel, Zero! Take back what's ours!"

"Great idea!"

She looked around and dug some more until she found a bottle. Penn took a pen and parchment out from his bag and immediately began writing a note. As Verge watched him, her smile began to drop a bit, as she realized it was just them together in the underground cave.

When Penn rolled up the paper and was about to take the bottle, he noticed Verge's look and frowned a bit himself. "You alright?"

"Huh? Oh…yeah…"

"You've actually been feeling down all day."

"Oh, so you've noticed."

"I'm really trying to make it a habit," He tried to smile but Verge still looked away. "Vergie, what's wrong?"

The fairy hesitated. Was there really anything wrong? She looked into her best friend's cyan eyes and for a moment, she felt like a child again.

"…Mission first. Talk later."

As much as he hated being left in suspense, he had to respect the mission and Verge's wishes. Verge became smaller once again and hid in Penn's bag. The redhead let one geyser shoot the bottle upwards, and another geyser shot him out as well.

He still found himself screaming as he found himself in the air and began falling into the sea again. But just in time, Boone popped out from the water and caught him perfectly.

"Boone!" Penn cried. He looked upwards and saw a green parrot flying to sit on his shoulder. "Sashi!"

"Good to see ya buddy!" Boone cheered. "Before you came, Pirate Maria took off with Boat Maria."

"And we wondered where you were!" Sashi finished.

Verge flew out of Penn's bag and lifted Penn's hat. "No time to explain! Except you need to hide in here until the time is right!" Sashi seemed to go for it.

Penn stood up straight. "Boone, let's look for ol' Rip! I've got a score to settle and a treasure chest to steal back!"

Boone gave a salute with his fin. "Aye-aye!" Verge hid in Penn's coat and Boone disappeared under the water.

He resurfaced again as they neared Larry, and Penn climbed onto the mast with a telescope in hand. "Larry, ho!" Penn shouted.

"Hey guys!" Larry the shark boat greeted. "Nice haul, Boone! What is that, redwood?"

"Would you believe pine? I've never felt so beautiful."

Larry chuckled. "Well you look it!"

Rippen was impatient. "Oh, come on, at best he's a seven! Penn Zero, let's do this!"

"If 'tis a duel you want, 'tis a duel you'll get!"

Verge and Sashi couldn't tell what was happening from outside and could only hear their conversation as their swords clashed against each other and parts of the boat.

"Prepare to feel the wrath of Camp Blade Prancers!"

"Camp Blade Prancers? That's where you went to sword-fighting school?"

"Yes it is and it's a terrifying name!"

Penn had screamed as he fell off the rope, and Rippen laughed evilly as he kicked away the boy's sword. "It's over! Victory at last!" He laughed once more. "Farewell, Penn Zero!"

As Rippen raised his sword again, he was shocked to find an opossum to replace his weapon. "An opossum?

"Looking for this?" Pirate Maria was on one of Larry's sails, holding up his sword.

Boat Maria suddenly appeared, laughing. "Haha! Didn't see that coming!" Pirate Maria then swung down to the deck.

"Well no matter!" Rippen reached into his coat. "A Blade Prancer always carries a backup sword!"

But instead of pulling out a sword, he held a kitten by the tail, and that kitten began tearing his clothes to shreds.

Verge, who got out to take care of the opossum and was rubbing its belly, lit up when she saw the cat and cheered. "Kitty!"

"You're lucky I came back," Maria said smugly. "And had access to small mammals."

"Well you're lucky Verge is capable of taming them," Penn retorted. "And I had a plan! We put Sashi under my hat."

"_WAK!" _The parrot brandished two small swords in each wing. _"Under my hat! Under my hat!" _She sighed and flew away. "Ugh, are we done yet?"

" Attack, my precious!" Verge yelled, pointing at the kitten. It still continued to chase Rippen as he shrieked and eventually went overboard.

"Larry, help!"

"Swallow you? Okay!"

"Larry, why would I say that! You have ears!"

"That's finger lickin' Rippen!"

Verge laughed as she returned to human size and picked up the kitten. It purred and nuzzled against her chest.

Penn turned back to Maria and took his hat off. "Well, uh, I'm glad you came back."

"Me too," Maria smiled genuinely. "You really taught me that being part of a team is worth the risk." Penn smiled, feeling satisfied, and Maria wrapped his arms around his neck. "I like you."

Verge was petting the cat, frowning a bit as Sashi went to perch on her shoulder. The parrot couldn't see her face but she could tell the fairy wasn't pleased.

Penn only laughed a bit. "Wha- aha…Thanks, thank you…and just so you know, I like you too. And I'm tied up."

"Should've seen it coming," Sashi whispered at Verge. The fairy laughed lightly.

"_Oh not again, no!" _

"I meant everything I said but I'm still a pirate!" Maria smiled as she patted his cheek, took the key from his neck, and took off with the treasure chest. She saluted at Penn and swung back onto Boat Maria.

"Eat my dust everybody! Technically there's no dust in a world covered in water, but eat it anyway! Chow down!"

As the Marias swam off into the sunset, Penn smiled as he watched. Sashi and Verge untied him, and at that they felt the zap.

The heroes returned to their world, another job well done. Verge was flying above them, but now flew to stay beside Sashi as Penn still looked dazed, a stupid smile on his face. The Japanese girl went to him a snapped her fingers.

"Hey! Lover boy! Snap out of it!"

"Lover boy?" Penn laughed defensively. "I don't know what you're talking about!"

Sashi had her hands on her hips. Verge's arms were crossed, and her wings fluttered the way they did when she was annoyed.

"Good news, lover boy!" Phyllis' voice called out as she dropped in in front of the team. She held the MUHU in her hands. "Next time you are in world with shard, MUHU will glow green."

Penn caught the MUHU when the mechanic tossed it to him. "Alright. One step closer to Mom and Dad."

At that, his pants suddenly fell off, revealing his blue and white-striped boxers. _"Aw, come on! Why! I'm serious, why did my pants fall down just then?!"_

Behind him, he could hear giggling as Verge held out his belt like a prize. The redhead turned, looking furious. "Verge!"

"Can we all call it a day?" The fairy flew upwards. She became smaller and dropped the belt before Penn, who picked it up hastily and fixed his pants.

"Yes, another job well done," Phyllis nodded. "Now get out."

The four exchanged looks, smiling a bit.

* * *

Back in Penn and Verge's bedroom, the little fairy sat in her tiny matchbox bed, holding her new MUHU in her hands. She admired the black, gold, and white colors, and how it could shrink and grow to her size like a fairy can. She liked that she finally knew who she truly was, and who she was supposed to be.

And with all honestly, she liked that she had the option to stray away from the part-time fairy guide business.

She didn't want to get hserself wrong, since she absolutely loved doing these missions with Penn, Boone and Sashi, and she loved being their fairy guide. But discovering her world – the world she'd been searching for these past eight years – helped her get some options. It helped her discover new feelings, new emotions, and new thoughts to ponder on.

But the question is, how could she tell Penn?

The door opened, and she looked up to find Penn had just come back from the bathroom, since he was whistling and was now dressed in pajamas. Verge's only pajamas was a nightgown she'd fashioned out of leaves, but she was too immersed in her own thoughts to get dressed. Penn noticed this and sat at the edge of his bed, near his bedside table.

"Verge?" he asked. He deeply looked concerned. The fairy knew that whenever she looked into his cyan eyes, there was no easy way of hiding anything from her best friend.

"Yeah?"

"You still wanna talk?"

"What is there to talk about?"

"Oh, I don't know…you were acting pretty much the same today but you also looked bummed about something. You sure there's nothing wrong?"

Verge set her MUHU down and grew to larger size. She stood before Penn, staring down at him. He looked up at her, not at all worried about what she would do, and stared back at his fairy friend with curious, innocent eyes.

Finally, Verge sighed and sat down on Penn's bed. He looked at her, but she was staring down at her hands.

"Zero, all I know is that I'm never going to leave your side and I'm going to do everything I can to make sure you're not hurt." When her blue eyes met his cyan ones, Penn could see hope: hope that things would definitely, no matter what would happen, be okay.

"That really means a lot, Verge."

"We're getting your parents back. Alright?" She held out her fist.

She wasn't fairy-sized, but Penn still smiled a genuine smile and bumped it with his own. "Alright."

* * *

**This legit took five hours to write HAHAHA IT'S 2AM HERE IM TIRED WHEW BUT I REALLY WANTED TO UPLOAD THE FIRST CHAPTER**

**I really want to make up for lost time. I have 4 more months of summer and I really hope to finish this whole fanfic within those four months. Even if I archery practice, hangouts with friends, road trips, other shows and books to catch up on and job-hunting, I promise to do my best!**

**I can't promise I'll upload regularly, but again, I'll do everything in my power to make sure I write during my free time!**

**Once again, thank you to all those that have faithfully waited until now! I hope this chapter keeps you satisfied for a good while before I write the next one. I love all of you!**

**-Ridaa**


	3. Alpha, Bravo, Unicorn

**Episode 2: Alpha, Bravo, Unicorn**

* * *

**Wasn't really a big fan of this episode but I tried :')**

**Also, guys I realized all the episode so of Season 2 so far are really hard! I don't know if you realized in my first story, but I tried to stop cutoffs between scenes and actually give some actions and dialogue in between the scenes of the show. As in, I really tried to make sure there was an explanation to everything happening. But oftentimes the heroes have episodes where they go to more than two worlds and it's just so much effort so, I'm sorry if I can't come up with any background to all the episodes :')**

**Also, I'm sorry to disappoint but I don't have any good ideas for special episodes, I've only got two. If you readers have more to suggest, feel free to pm!**

* * *

"I really hope this works…"

Penn held his MUHU in his hand as he and his friends walked to the Odyssey, ready to get working.. Verge was sitting on his shoulder this time, also gazing at the device.

"I'm sure we'll be able to find a world with a shard," Verge piped.

"Just don't get your hopes up," Sashi warned.

"It _is _the infinite multi-verse we're talking about," Boone added, shrugging.

The redhead sighed, pocketing his MUHU. "I'm well aware of that…"

"Hey, what if the last dimension with the talking boats had the shard?" Verge suggested, rubbing her chin. "Would Phyllis allow us to go back?"

"Doubt it," Penn scoffed. "And if the shard really were there…man I'd be annoyed."

The quartet entered the theatre. Phyllis was already at the controls, typing away. As the four stepped onto the zap platform, their boss looked over the rail with a smile. "I hope you have fire in belly, because today you go back to dragon world!"

Sashi looked excited. "Dragon World? Really?"

"Oh cool!" Verge grinned. "I'm gonna be a dragonfly again!" She looked over to her left to see Sashi was blushing.

The Japanese girl held her hands behind her back. "Uh, yeah, that's cool." She laughed nervously.

Penn just didn't look impressed. "Aw, it's all good Sash," He rolled his eyes. "We all know you're excited to see _Blaze."_ The look on his face made it seem like he'd just made a really good insult. "You're blushing brighter than Boone."

The brunette boy was indeed, turning a new shade of red as he giggled. Penn just groaned. His eyes widened as he looked upwards. "You too, Phyllis?"

The mechanic's face was also red as she held a pair of what looked like Blaze's sunglasses. A poster of Blaze signing a picture of himself, smiling, was laid out behind her. "Phyllis like how Blaze talk about himself in third person." She put the sunglasses on, her hand under her chin as her expression looked dreamy. "Very appealing quality. Heehee."

Penn crossed his arms. Verge, who was still flying above him, knocked on his forehead. "Don't worry, Zero," she said, somewhat proudly. "I'm not at all affected by Blaze's looks!"

The redhead smirked as Phyllis flipped the switch. "Yeah, but you're not affected by anything!"

* * *

Once the heroes were zapped, Verge looked behind her, admiring her dragon fly wings beating as fast as they could. She grew to a bigger dragon size and stood beside Penn.

"Sweet!" Boone piped, pointing. "A Blaze statue photo-op."

"Uh-oh," Verge said, a hand on her hip.

This irked Penn greatly as he uncrossed his arms and pushed his sunglasses up. "Ahh. A statue of _only Blaze, _holding the trophy that he and I _both _won." At this, Boone and Verge rolled their eyes playfully. "Huh. That doesn't bother me in the least!" He huffed.

"Sure it doesn't, Zero," The dragonfly reached to ruffle his hair, and Penn glared.

Just then, a large shadow loomed over them, and when the heroes looked upwards, they gasped. A giant ship in the shape of a unicorn was approaching the academy, and it did not look friendly. All the dragons began to scream and scatter, searching for places to hide.

"_All cadets report to the head base! All cadets report to the head base!" _A siren blared throughout the school, and all students began to assemble at the designated area. The heroes had no choice but to gather there as well.

Once they'd arrived, they'd taken front row seats in front of the projector, where General Talon waited for them. Verge turned smaller again to make room, and sat on the table in front of Penn. All dragons took their seats and the lights dimmed down. The projector displayed a visual of the giant ship that had loomed over them.

"As you know, the enemy has declared war on the dragons!" The general looked immensely serious. "They've already taken out our other bases with their colossal new battle station! Wingfire Academy is our last line of defense! We've detected a weak spot in the underside of the battle station!" She pointed at the area on the visual. "Here."

Suddenly, Boone giggled and raised his arm. "His weak spot looks like his belly button!"

"What?" Verge whispered. "This is ser—"

General Talon only smiled. "Very perceptive analysis, Cadet Cupcake! From now on, this will be known as 'Operation: Belly Button'!" The dragon at the projector changed slides.

"Mm-hmm," Booned hummed to himself in satisfaction. A puff of smoke poured out of Verge's snout.

"The battle station will be ready to fire when its horn is completely filled with rainbow colors! We will attack from the east. To create a distraction for Lieutenant Renegade," At this she smiled proudly at Penn, who smiled back. "who will lead a small team to strike the belly button from the west!"

Sashi leaned back in her seat, looking annoyed. "Well. I guess I don't need to check my Specs."

"Maybe next mission," Verge assured.

General Talon stood straight as the lights came back on. "Any questions?"

_Screeeeeeeeeeeeeee! _Everyone covered their ears and flinched as someone's claws scratched the blackboard at the side of the base. A yellow couch was placed there, and on the couch was a messy, fat dragon that looked to be surrounded by trash. Pizza boxes, soda cans, and chips littered his area, and upon closer look, the heroes were shocked to recognize who the dragon was.

"Just one." The dragon burped, a small flame of fire appearing. "Blaze wants to know why we don't save ourselves a lot of trouble and surrender now."

"You've got to be pulling my wings." Verge stared at the couch dragon in surprise. This was definitely the Blaze they'd met but not the Blaze they're remembered. He was not like this when they left the world.

"Officer Blaze," General Talon started. "Return to your barracks, and continue being pathetic on your own."

But the once-cool dragon didn't move from his couch. He only sipped one another soda can. "Blaze has some spare time while Blaze's frozen pizza cooks, and these dragons have a right to know what they're flying into. Blaze was there when the unicorns attacked the first dragon base. Real trouble started when Blaze got close to the target and encountered…General Bighorn. Blaze thought Blaze was the best, but Blaze was wrong about Blaze. It wasn't just Blaze's shades that were cracked. It was also Blaze's confidence. So Blaze gave up being great, and started drinking flaming soda, and binge-watching cooking shows." The heroes shuddered in disgust. Verge was still frozen, staring at Blaze with her mouth agape.

A _ding _sound was heard, and Blaze began to stand up. "Blaze's pizza is ready, but heed Blaze's words…" He struggled, fell off the couch, and stood right back up. "Run away from things that are difficult." And with that, he went to retrieve his pizza.

General Talon gave a deep sigh of disappointment before returning to the rest of the cadets. "Alright, you're all dismissed!"

The dragons began to pile out, but the heroes were still sitting at their seats. "I can't believe it," Sashi breathed. "How could Blaze do that to himself."

Penn had no response. "Come on, guys, let's settle it at the Officer's Club." He picked up Verge, who was still frozen, by her shirt collar, and carried her out the door. The three flew to their destination.

When the three arrived at the club, it was nighttime and they were shocked to find Blaze was already there, stuffing his mouth with his cooked frozen pizza and other treats. They made a silent agreement to sit at a round table farther away from his, and a dragon came up to take their orders.

"I'll have a steak with mashed potatoes," Boone said instantly.

Sashi shrugged. "Same, I guess."

"Just an iced tea," Penn nodded.

The waitress nodded back and moved away.

They sat down and Penn set Verge down on the table. Verge finally shook out of her daze and stood. "Wow. I'm still having trouble getting that image out of my head." Penn jokingly pointed at the table Blaze was seated at, and she returned to her frozen, agape stance.

"Tell me about it," Boone twitched a bit. "It's hard to believe someone that cool became that washed up."

Sashi sighed. "I know, right?"

The waitress from earlier arrived with their orders, and once she disappeared, Verge put a serious face on. "Guys, game plan."

The green dragon nodded, intertwining his hands. "Okay, Blaze is the only one who's fought General Bighorn. He knows the unicorns better than anyone. We could really use his help. We just gotta pull him outta that fat, disgusting slump he's in." He took one glance at Sashi and changed the tone of his voice. "If only there was someone he had an emotional connection with!" The yellow dragon rolled her eyes. "Hmm…"

"Lay her off, Zero," Verge defended. "She obviously doesn't want to do it."

Boone raised his hand the same way he did at the base meeting. "I'll do it!"

"Hello?" Sashi raised an eyebrow. "He was talking about _me?"_

"Oh yeah no definitely okay," Boone shrugged innocently. "I guess either one of us could do it but yeah sure you go ahead!"

Sashi turned to look at the purple dragon, chowing down on a burger, and winced. She gagged and forced herself to approach him. "Good luck!" Verge whispered.

The boy dragons and the dragonfly continued to watch from their table. They couldn't hear their conversation, but from what they could tell, Sashi looked very persuasive.

"What do you think they're saying?" Verge asked.

Penn shrugged. "Dunno. Blaze still looks chill."

"I want some of that chicken," Boone admitted.

When Blaze looked like he had sighed, Verge clapped her hands. "I think she got him!"

Sashi came back to the gang a few moments later. "He's willing to train us," she reported. "But, I didn't get him enough to get him to fight back with us."

"It's okay Sash," Verge reassured. "He will!"

"What matters is you were able to persuade him!" Penn nodded, satisfied.

"We start tomorrow morning."

* * *

And so they did. Blaze helped them do all sorts of training. He helped time their flights, he held the punching bag for them to punch, he gave them the number of times they needed to lift a barbell. The only problem is, he didn't seem to have his heart in it. While he timed, he timed how fast his hotdogs cooked, he chewed on the sandwich he made Boone lift. He made them do yoga but he still had chicken legs and was falling asleep. Verge knew this wasn't proper training if their own coach couldn't seem to be at one with them. His belly jiggled when someone moved him, which made Boone, Sashi, and Verge exchange looks.

They kept eyeing the horn, which looked ready to be fired up any second.

Once, Verge saw Penn glance down at his MUHU, but she chose to ignore that.

The team still did their best to do their crunches, their fireball shooting, and…wood chopping?

"_How _is chopping wood going to help us beat the unicorns?!" Penn said in between pants.

"Blaze just really likes s'mores." The dragon held up a marshmallow on a stick. The sight made Verge's droopy, see-through golden wings puff back up again and flap ferociously as she ran to tackle him. Penn easily held her back.

Suddenly, a siren sounded out throughout the base, the same siren that rang yesterday to call the dragons. But the heroes knew it was a warning siren this time.

"Last chance, Blaze!" Sashi cried, as they began to walk off. "Help us kick some unicorn butt!"

"Come on, Zero," Verge said, flying upwards. "You have a troop to lead!"

Penn nodded, and looked behind him to see the other dragons that nodded as well.

Together, in proper formation, they took towards the sky and headed for the battle station.

Thanks to their training, they shot perfect fireballs that shot down all the unicorns that guarded the belly button. "I got company!" Penn shouted, looking behind him.

"On it!" Sashi took out one unicorn with her fire.

Verge tackled another one. The unicorn whinnied and tried to shake her off. "Don't make me do this!" the dragonfly cried.

But the unicorn did a barrel roll, and Verge fell right off him. However, as a master of flying face up, she didn't have any trouble. "You asked for it." She shot a fireball, and the unicorn found himself falling. He screamed, and Verge moved out of the way, waving as he descended.

Penn smirked as he finally saw the belly button, and he shot his best fireball at it. Their mission would be accomplished!

But the General Bighorn finally appeared, engulfing the fireball with an evil smile. "That's not a shot!" she laughed, the Australian accent evident. "_This _is a shot!"

The horn on her head glowed rainbow colors and the General whinnied as she fired at Penn.

"Penn, watch out!"

Sashi suddenly appeared in front of the green dragon, and the shot exploded. The dragon passed out and began to fall into a truck of killer bees.

"_Sashi!"_

Penn, Boone, and Verge, watched her in horror, but the General Bighorn appeared from behind and smacked their heads together. "Haha!"

They trio were too dizzy from the hit that there was almost no time to save Sashi.

But thankfully, someone else did. Verge shook her head and found Blaze managed to catch her in the nick of time. "Blaze!" Verge cheered, pumping her fist.

There was no time to celebrate, however, as General Bighorn took the three of them by their collars, her wicked grin still plastered on her face. "I just threw your mate down under us! Next, I'm gonna send you two far off out!"

"Blaze thinks Bighorn should pick on someone her own size!"

"But there's no one my size! So I must pick on those much smaller!"

Bighorn completely forgot about the three and let them go, now flying after Blaze. The two engaged in their heated battle, Boone flew to a truck and Penn went to fly towards the belly button.

"I have eyes on the target," he reported, fire forming in his mouth.

"Ha! Met oo!"

The part-time hero turned to see Rippen shooting a fireball at him. Penn dodged in time but then that made the part-time villain laugh maniacally and start another chase.

Verge panicked, unsure of what to do. Bighorn had Blaze by the collar now, and it looked like she was about to blast him again. "Kick her gut!" she yelled.

Blaze seemed to get the message, and did just that. General Bighorn did a double take, and she began to descend. As she fell, she managed to land on Rippen in the process, and together they both landed in the truck of killer bees.

"_Criiiikeeeey!"_

"Haha!" Verge did a victory loop. "Yes!" She began to fly to the battle station.

Boone, who was jamming away on a keytar with Larry on drums, laughed as well. "General Bighorn got demoted to major buzzkill!"

Penn, who was focused on the belly button yet again, smiled as he reunited with Verge. "I have target visual. Ladies first?"

Verge smirked. "By all means, be my guest."

"Let's just do it together. _Fire in the belly button!"_

They both shot their flames at the hole, flew away quickly, and the battle station exploded in confetti and flames.

The dragons at the base cheered in victory.

"_Alright!"_

Verge did another victory loop, turned smaller, and she and Penn did a tiny fist bump.

* * *

Later that evening, a special awarding ceremony commenced, and the heroes saluted General Talon, as she rewarded them with special medals. As Blaze was the final awardee, Sashi – who actually had a case around her arm now – tiptoed to plant a big kiss on his snout.

However, when she did, his stomach protruded from his shirt, and she gave a look of disgust.

Penn and Verge exchanged a look, resisting the urge to laugh.

* * *

Once they arrived home, Penn couldn't help chuckling. "Still think he's all that, Sash?"

The girl groaned. "Not a word."

"_I _don't think so," Verge pointed out.

Penn raised an eyebrow, smirking, and placed a hand on his hip. "Suuure about that?"

The fairy only laughed as she poked his chest. "I like _you _more than him, and that's saying something."

The quartet laughed and got off the platform, ready to get home. But once Verge realized what she'd said, the same, frozen look from when she first saw the new Blaze crossed her face, as a sudden thought came over her.

* * *

**I simply had enough time to write this! I wonder when I'll have time again for the next one…**

**Once again, there was no proof-reading! I'll do it soon**


	4. A Game of Cat and Mouse

**Episode 3: A Game of Cat and Mouse**

* * *

**I finished watching all Season 2 episodes!**

**I'm sad ;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;; I have a lot of work to do as well HAHA wish me luck in writing!**

**Pls review and favorite!**

* * *

"And if you twist it, it becomes your portable MUT!" King Lauqui chirped happily through Verge's MUHU. The King and Queen of Fairy World were communicating with their daughter, teaching her how the different functions of the device they gave her a few days ago.

"Wow!" Verge grinned, sitting cross-legged on her matchbox bed. "This is neat! I can visit any time?"

"Of course, sweetie," Queen Lareon smiled gently. "We all still miss you very much, and you left so soon. Please consider coming back? We want to teach you the ways of this world."

The King nodded. "How we work, how fairies travel to your dimension…you know, we bring the seasons there!"

"Oh!" Verge's blue eyes widened. "How come I never saw any fairies here?"

Her father smirked. "Fairies are very good at hiding. We don't tell anyone _everything." _Verge playfully rolled her eyes. "We need to get going now, dear. Have a nice day!"

"Love you Mom, love you Dad!"

The King and Queen disappeared, and Verge got out of bed, returned to human size, and pocketed her MUHU.

At the same time, Penn entered the room and dropped his bag onto the floor. "Ready to go?" he asked, beaming.

Verge smiled back, putting her red vest on. "Always."

They headed out of the house and met up with Boone and Sashi. The four walked their way to the Odyssey together.

"Okay, listen up children," Phyllis said, standing before them as they stood on their zap platform. "I want you to pay _very close attention." _

Suddenly, Phyllis made a gagging sound and opened her mouth. Verge shrieked, hiding behind Penn, expecting vomit. But all that came out of the mechanic's mouth was a smaller, holographic version of herself, that spoke as well and seemed to have her own Specs to check. _"Today's mission is to get thrust generator chip back to engine room so spaceship is not sucked into black hole."_

The mini holo-Phyllis disappeared and Sashi raised an eyebrow. "No offense Phyllis, but mission briefings are usually _my _thing."

"Your thing is not to screw up mission." Phyllis shot a grappling gun to her platform and began to zap the heroes. "Good luck!"

Penn looked sceptical. "Well, we just kinda breezed past you shooting a holographic Phyllis out of your mouth, but—"

* * *

"—_I suppose we could handle this—"_

Verge was still in her regular form today, and when they arrived in the new world, she heard squeaking.

"_What? What's this?! HELLO?!"_

"Zero?!"

The fairy turned smaller and found herself face-to-face with a white mouse. It looked distressed, and when it looked at her, it was surprised.

"_Verge?"_

"AWWW!" The fairy practically tackled Mouse Penn to the ground in a big, bear hug. Or was it rodent hug? "You are _sooo _cute!"

Penn's white mouse face turned a shade of pink. _"Wait, you can understand me?"_

"Yeah, dum-dum! I have Animal Fairy powers! I speak animal."

"_Right…well great! Where's Boone and Sashi?"_

"Dunno…"

"_Hello? Penn? Sashi! Verge! Where are you guys?"_

Boone's voice seemed to be calling out, and this made Verge and Penn look around. They seemed to be in a giant spaceship, as Phyllis said, and the galaxy was right outside their window. There was a giant table of buttons and controls so the two approached it. "Boone?" Verge called back. "We're right here! Are you in my stomach again?"

"_Uhh it doesn't look like I'm in your stomach! Actually, where am _I?" The Wiseman gasped. _"Are we in like, hide-and-seek world?! Am I it?!"_

"I don't think so…Zero is a mouse, by the way."

"_Oh! Okay, okay!"_

Penn and Verge reached the controls and the mouse tripped on a button with a squeak. It made Verge giggle and let a video on one of the ship's screens to play. A man that stood before what looked like a burning city appeared. "Hello remaining people on Earth!" he spoke. "I'm Bill Nye. Obviously."

"Who?" Verge crossed her arms. Penn shushed her.

"As you thaw from your cryogenic pods we hope you enjoyed your one thousand-year journey." Bill held up a small model of Earth. "Your ship should be orbiting Kepler-452B, a beautiful, uninhabited Earth-like planet where civilization will begin anew. Unless something in which case humanity's last chance of survival has been snuffed out, and I'm completely wasting my time."

"_Whoooa!"_

Penn and Verge pressed their faces to the window before them and gazed upon the millions of cryogenic pods that each held a single, thousand-year old sleeping human. It seemed like humanity wasn't going to die after all.

"Neat, technology," Verge smiled. "And they're all going to be free soon! This mission should be simple enough—"

"_Oh no! Verge, look!"_

Through another screen, a security camera caught the scene of a cat with Rippen's face in the level 5 engine room. The Rippen cat laughed maniacally as it stole the chip they were supposed to protect.

Boone's voice suddenly spoke in a robotic voice and sirens blared out. _"Warning! Warning! Danger! Thrust generator chip has been removed. Gravitational pull will suck ship into black hole in nine minutes._"

"Oh dust," Verge's wings flapped rapidly as the word _Warning! _flashed on one screen. "Zero, what do we do?!"

"_Who said that?" _Boone's voice asked. That's when Verge noticed his face on another one of the ship's screens.

"Boone?"

The face gasped. "I _said that! I'm the ship's computer! Are you seeing me right now Verge?!"_

"Uhh, yeah buddy, you're looking pretty…high-tech."

"_Whoa so that means…I'm smart! I can finally realize my secret dream of becoming the galaxy's hottest electronic DJ!"_

Another screen flashed colored lights and the buttons around Boone's electronic face began to glow. Verge deadpanned. "How did that secret dream even come to pass."

"_I don't tell you everything! Hit it, CPU!"_

Rave music sounded out across the computer, and Penn looked confused. He accidentally stepped on a button that had the words "Cryo Pilot 1" on it. One of the pods opened up and Verge flew to it. Sashi was inside, and she wore a uniform just like the other people in the pods. Her eyes fluttered open and they widened when Verge was too close to her face.

"Verge!"

"Sashi!" the fairy cried. "You're alive!"

The part-time sidekick looked down at her body and tried to wriggle. "Why can't I move?!"

"Uhhh because your body has been asleep for almost a thousand years?"

"What?!"

"I know, right? Good luck getting the pins and needles out."

Penn had to go do his job, so he hopped off the main computer table and squeaked at Verge. _"You help Sashi and Boone! I'm tracking Rippen down!"_

Verge saluted. "Aye aye!"

As Penn scampered off, Sashi blinked. "Did you just talk to a mouse?"

"You've seen me talk to animals! And that was Zero, by the way."

"Hmm…I suppose he's had weirder forms."

"So we're in a ship with the remnants of humanity's civilization sleeping in beds that help them live for a millennium until they find a new Earth-like planet."

"Technology has really stepped up… Anyway, help me get out!"

"Right! Just how exactly?"

"Well, how did you wake me up?"

"Zero just stepped on a button!"

"Press another button!"

Verge flew back to the computer and nearly fainted at the millions of controls before her. "I don't know which one to press!"

"Just press some and see what they do!"

"Uhhh…"

The fairy hopped on a button and Boone's face appeared on the computer screen. He seemed to be wearing shades. _"Ooh! It is bread and jam time!" _Colored lights began to flash like a real party was going on. _"DJ Pajamy-jam is in the spaceshiiiip! How about some old-school dance beats for some old-school play for the boogie, the woogie human space travellers!"_

"Boone, you made that happen by yourself!" Verge complained.

"_Just lovin' my job, Vergie!"_

"Ugh, you gotta get out of your pod yourself Sashi!"

The Japanese girl rolled her eyes at the music continued to wriggle in her bed and was getting very frustrated. "Okay, gotta get out of this contraption…" Verge flew back over and managed to push her out of the pod. But even as she was now on the floor, Sashi still had to use her chin to move towards the computer. "Stupid…frozen…body…!"

"What if I dust you?" Verge suggested.

"It's still hard since you technically need the whole body to fly with dust!"

Verge returned to human size and tried to help her stand but could only drag her by the wrist.

The girls managed to make it to the computer and Sashi tried to stand up by grasping for something. But she accidentally pulled a lever down, and apparently that made both of them start to float without the help of fairy dust. "What—" Verge gasped.

Bill Nye appeared once again on the screen. "Artificial gravity has been disengaged."

Sashi deadpanned. "Awesome."

"Gravity: an interesting subject and by gravity, I'm talking about the natural phenomenon by which all things with mass are brought toward each other. Not gravity as in I'm talking in a very serious way like, 'I'm sorry sir, I don't know how to tell you this but, we're out of peanut butter.'"

"We know, Nye!" the fairy shouted.

Verge, who was already an expert on floating and flying, tried to pull Sashi back to the computer. Boone's face appeared on the screen. _"Ship will be sucked into black hole in two minutes. Whoooaaa that black hole looks sca-ry! I can't wait to see how Penn, Verge, and Sashi save us!"_

"_Alright_, Boone!" Verge turned smaller again and tried searching for the button. "Argh, it's no use! The only way we can be saved is if Penn gets the chip back!"

"Isn't there anything we can do?" Sashi asked, exasperated.

"Not sure…I'll try to look for Penn!"

"Okay. I'll keep holding on for dear life!"

"Try to turn on artificial gravity again!"

"But I forgot the control for that—"

But Verge was already flying off.

She tried to check each room quickly but she had no idea where Cat Rippen and Mouse Penn could be. She was checking all the levels that weren't near the engine room but still couldn't find them. Suddenly, Verge felt gravity returning.

"Whew," she still chose to fly but at least it made flying easier. "I wonder if Penn and Sashi are okay…!"

As she kept searching, she suddenly heard explosions. Down a hallway she was flying in, she saw Rippen was now a robot cat skeleton and Penn had the generator chip.

"Zero!" She quickly flew to him and picked him up, carrying him to an elevator that would lead them to level 5. They managed to escape just before Rippen caught them.

"_That was close!" _Penn squeaked. _"What's happened so far?"_

"I think you heard from Boone," Verge frowned. "We have less than two minutes left!"

Suddenly, they heard someone underneath them. The Robot Cat Rippen was ripping through the elevator floor and tried to get to the two. They screamed and immediately tried to run get out of the elevator. Verge quickly dusted Penn, who thanked her quickly, and they flew upwards. They reached a door and slipped through the cracks of the elevator door, leaving Rippen to burn.

"Zero, return the chip!"

The part-time fairy guide pointed to the engine room's control panel, where Penn scurried up and was about to put the chip back in place.

But just then, Rippen appeared from behind and slapped them both away. "Hey!" Verge complaind. The robot cat only laughed, pressed the "Airlock open" button, and suddenly a door opened, exposing the ship to outer space and starting to suck Penn and Verge out. _"Oh no!"_

Rippen stood behind another door and waved.

As the chip went sailing, Penn managed to catch it with his tail and hold his breath at the same time. Verge also had to hold her breath, and while Penn struggled to hold on, she grew to human form so iy would be easier to hold onto the walls. The fairy did her best to flap her wings to keep them in the ship and stop herself, Penn and the chip from exploding into space.

Bill Nye appeared on the screen above them. "Carbon-based mammals unfortunately do not have the ability to survive in space. And if for some reason you're wondering if mice are carbonated mammals, why, yes they are!"

The look in Penn's eyes when he glanced at Verge was pure hopelessness. But the look Verge shot right back at him was determination, and the shake of her head helped him remind that they were never going to give up. Her grip tightened on the mouse, and it let Penn know that most importantly, they weren't going to give up on each other.

Lucky for them, Boone found the Airlock door button and managed to close it. Penn and Verge were able to breathe again, and they both panted for air. "We're alive!" Verge cried, flapping her wings. "Now to put that chip back!"

Rippen was obviously furious, and tried to shoot them his laser hands. Verge carried Penn in her palms and managed to dodge each shot. She became smaller and the two managed to escape through a hole Rippen created. In the end, he and Larry – who was a robot as well, apparently - were the ones who ended up getting sucked into space.

And the rest of the ship was about to sucked into space.

"_Ship to be sucked into black hole. In 10…9…8…7…6…"_

"_Hey, Mousey Penn! And Verge too!" _Boone's voice called. _"I need that chip like, right now, or we might all be sucked into that black hole."_

"…_2…1…"_

Together, Penn and Verge shoved the chip right into its proper place. Slowly, the ship regained its thrusters, and shot itself right out of the black hole right on time. As the ship picked up speed, Boone made the flashing lights act up again, bring the whole ship to life.

"_Wooo! I can feel the power!"_

"Yes!" Verge pumped her fist and grew to a bigger size. She picked up Penn in her palm and with their biggest grins, they did a tiny fist bump reversed.

"_WOOO! DJ Jamy-jam has left the galaxy!"_

Verge and Penn reunited with Sashi at the main computer room, and Sashi gave the fairy a big hug. "We're headed right for Kepler-452B!" the girl reported. The three looked out of the ship's window in satisfaction.

"_Aw yeah!" _Boone cheered. _"Time to crack open those thousand year-old nachos!"_

Verge frowned. "He realizes he can't eat them right…?"

Penn just shrugged.

* * *

**Alright! Done with that! Honestly, didn't really like this episode much either HAHA  
**

**I had a 21st Literature class in high school and we talked about shows like the Road Runner, Tom and Jerry are all about nothingness and their content is full of nihilism. **

**Idk what else to say! Pls get people to read this :3**


	5. Wings of Destiny

**Episode 4: Wings of Destiny**

* * *

**My boyfriend is on a plane and on his way home right now so I'm staying up writing this chapter bc I can't get to sleep until I know he's back on land :')))**

* * *

Penn, Boone, and Sashi had an important midterm exam in Home Economics, and Verge's strict code was to not be at school whenever they had any important projects or tests. So she chose to spend the morning at Fairy World.

It was only for a quick while. Verge wanted a tour of the whole World, and she realized she could make time if she was already at the Odyssey when work would begin. Phyllis could just easily zap her back when her other three friends would arrive.

Verge made it to Fairy World with a slingbag made of leaves. When her parents saw her, they greeted her with open arms and an announcement that their princess has come to visit. The fairy princess ended up spending an entire day meeting her subjects, learning different names and different fairy talents. When it was almost time for work, the royal family returned to their palace, and Verge turned to the King and Queen apologetically

"Sorry Mom and Dad, I really need to get back. It's almost time for my next mission!"

"Oh dear, we're sorry," Queen Lareon sighed. "We promised a tour, but the other fairies were really excited to meet you."

"I'm actually surprised," Verge admitted. "I figured they would think I'm too…overpowered?"

"The Fairy Kingdom loves you!" King Lauqui insisted. "And as their princess, it's your duty to know each and every one of them!"

Verge scratched the back of her head. "Yeah well…I can't remember them all but I'll try!" The brunette fairy hesitated. "Before I go, I've been meaning to ask…aren't there other dimensions that have fairies of other forms? Fairies that don't really come here? My friends and I were able to zap to their worlds. How come ours is so secured?"

Queen Lareon placed a hand on her shoulder and made Verge turn to the palace window. There, she had a wide-range view of the Fairy World. The different areas for each seasons could almost be see. "It is because we are the only fairies that have the job of going to the human worlds and bringing forth the seasons. It is our duty to ensure all dimensions get their seasons, for we keep the balance of nature's work."

"That's pretty much the gist but we'll explain more when you come back again," King Lauqui gave his daughter a quick hug. "We'll give you your tour then. We may also be able to start your princess duties!'

Verge smiled sheepishly. Ever since she discovered she was princess of this world, that was one thing she had been dreading.

Verge's mother hugged her as well and placed a kiss on her forehead. "See you soon, my Divergent."

"Oh, if you run into the fairy dimension that focuses on boxing, give a punch to the Godmothers for me!"

The brunette fairy chuckled and flapped her wings. "See you Mom, see you Dad."

As if on cue, she was zapped back to Middleburg.

Verge came out of the MUT in her fairy size and was back in the Odyssey right on time. She smiled as she landed on the theatre floor but frowned when she saw her friends enter through the doors. Penn and Sashi had annoyed, furious looks on their faces and Boone seemed rather worried. _"Phyllis! Verge! We have a major problem!"_

Verge returned to human size and moved out of Penn and Sashi's way as the heroes stepped on the zap platform. "Uh, what's going on?"

"Penn and Sashi aren't talking to each other. Watch." The Wiseman turned to the other two. "Guys? You know how you bet me I'd never be able to do a tongue push-up? Well…" Boone put his hands behind his back, flopped onto the floor and did just that.

Penn and Sashi kept their angry faces and Verge blinked. She slowly started clapping and looked around awkwardly to see if anyone would join her.

Penn rolled his eyes. "Greeeeat."

Sashi didn't even stare. "You showed us."

Boone stood up, exchanging a worried look with Verge. "Penn? Aren't you gonna make some drawl observation?"

"Well, I guess I could make a cutting remark about doing that on a filthy theatre floor, like some animal. Then I'd have to do everything around you."

Sashi glared at him. "Everything? How about nothing?"

"Oh, boy," Verge's wings fluttered worriedly.

Boone rushed towards Phyllis and grabbed her shoulder. "Phyllis! Make them stop!"

"There is no time," the mechanic insisted. "You must fix in world, or it will cause problem in mission."

"But Penn and Sashi are the most stubborn people I've ever met!" Verge cried.

"_Hey!"_

"You guys know it's true!"

"And I live by a strict code," Boone said. He brought out a pendant that hung around a chain on his neck. He read it aloud. "Don't get involved in stuff and things."

"Boone, since when have you had that code?"

"Let's just establish that, I too, don't tell you everything."

Phyllis looked annoyed. "Phyllis code is shut mouth and get to work!" She easily picked Boone up and threw him back on the zap platform. Verge helped him up and flew above him, but Phyllis pointed a finger at her as well. "You! Shrink."

The fairy guide didn't question it and went smaller, just before Phyllis zapped them to a new world.

* * *

Once they were zapped, Verge noticed how Penn was flying beside her. She was quite shocked to notice the pairs of wings that were behind him and Boone. For a moment, Verge wondered if she was back in Fairy World, but she knew Penn and Boone didn't have colored skin and hair in Fairy World, so this must've been one of the other fairy dimensions she hasn't visited yet.

Boone marveled at the world. "Whoa! We're in a magical, delicate, Renaissance Faire fairy world full of fancy and wonder!"

Penn looked confused as he turned. "And bone-crushing wrestling?"

Sure enough, there were signs that pointed to, a few meters ahead, a wrestling ring was in the center of what looked like an arena. A wrestling match between two fairies was currently ongoing, and the crowd around them was going wild. Verge frowned at the sight. "Fairies don't act like that."

Penn smirked and crossed his arms. "Apparently, they do in this world. Get ready to start lifting weights."

"Haha, no. This is one of the other fairy dimensions my dad told me about! What a coincidence we ended up here."

The three went closer and Boone grinned. "Cool!" Then he remembered something. "Hey, where's Sashi?

"I'm right here."

Boone and Verge looked to their right and were surprised to see Sashi was _way _taller than the other three. She was also incredibly ripped, buff, and intimidating.

"_Whoa!" _Boone and Verge exclaimed.

"Nice form, Sash!" Verge piped.

"You're humongous!" Boone added.

Penn, who was on the ground now, had his arms crossed as he looked annoyed. "I think you mean she's humongous in her annoyingness." When the other three stared at him, he just added, "Meaning, she's _so annoying _you would describe that quality as _humongous!"_

Sashi didn't look insulted. "Um, if you have to explain a put-down, you probably screwed it up."

Penn just glared. "Oh boy," Verge said defeatedly.

Boone nudged Penn. "Don't you have something to ask Sashi?"

"Nope!"

"Nothing about checking her Specs? Eh?"

"Don't worry, Boone," Sashi said, her arms crossed. "I'll check 'em because _I_ do my job."

Penn looked ready to argue as he raised a finger. _"Oh, oho ho—"_

"_Zero, don't."_

"Alright! We are fairies who live in Wing Wood forest. Every thousand years, a tag team wrestling tournament is held. The winners get an enchanted gem, giving them the power to rule the forest! Penn and I are a 'team' and we must win the tournament so the forest doesn't fall into evil hands."

Penn huffed. "Can't Verge be my teammate instead? I mean, she's a fairy too."

"You know that can't work, Zero," Verge frowned. "I'm not actually filling in for anyone. It has to be you and Sashi."

Suddenly, an announcer's voice rang out and colored lights flashed around. _"Welcome to Fairy Mania IV!" _The crowd went cheered loudly. _"And now! Collateral Damage! And his partner, the Hooded Pixie!"_

"_Your boos nourish my soul!"_

"That's Rippen and some other fairy!" Verge pointed out. She looked at Penn and Sashi. "Your team looks like it's gonna be after this one. You guys better put your differences aside and win this thing!"

Sashi started walking. "Don't worry, Verge. I know _I'll _ come through for this mission."

Penn glared at flew after her. "What's _that _supposed to mean?!"

"Uh-oh," Boone said worriedly. "I have a bad feeling about today."

Verge sighed. "Can't you try to sort things out between them? What even happened today?"

"Even I'm not so sure…"

"Not sure? Or you forgot."

"Uhh…both?"

Verge rolled her eyes and gazed up at the wrestling match. For some reason, Rippen was a chair and his partner was using him to cheat and swat at the other team. Verge didn't know anything about wrestling, but it seemed that Rippen and his partner won. Now, it was time for Penn and Sashi.

"They look pretty tough," Boone said, frowning. "You guys are gonna have to be really in sync to beat them!"

Penn continued to glare at Sashi though. "Oh, I'm a hundred percent in sync! _Sashi's_ the one who's not in sync!"

Sashi glared back. "Oh, I'm more in sync than you could ever dream of being!"

The blue-haired fairy laughed. "Well I've got news for you sister! This ain't no dream, this is reality! And there's no sync for you here!"

"The only thing _you're_ in sync with is…stink!" She jabbed a finger at his chest angrily.

Penn only laughed mockingly again. "Excellent rhyme! You hear that silence? That's the sound of your in-sync joke falling on its face!"

"Yeah?"

"Yeah!"

"_Yeah?"_

"_Yeah!"_

The continued to get at it and Verge groaned. Boone gripped his walking stick. "Good talk."

Hearing enough of them, Verge flapped her wings angrily and flew in between them, pushing them apart and putting hands on their mouths. _"Guys! _Focus! You hawkheads better win this round!" She looked up at the team map and saw a fairy moved a leaf labeled "The Unfairies" to the next round. "Please try to keep your eyes on the prize."

Penn sighed. "Sure. Okay. Fine."

But Verge could tell they were still angry as they walked to the wrestlers' entrance.

The announcer's voice boomed out again. _"And now, led by their manager, Stewart Stylish, and accompanied by the Princess of the Seasons' Fairy World Dimension!"_

"They knew I was here?" Verge gasped a bit.

Boone was busy posing for the audience as he walked down to the side of the ring. "I guess all fairies are aware of each other's' presence?"

"_Please welcome Wings of Destiny!"_

The spotlights were now on Penn and Sashi, but the two seemed to be physically arguing on their way to the center of the ring. Verge felt like biting her nails. "Ohhh boy."

"_And their opponent, the first ladies of unwanted advice, the Godmothers!"_

"Ooh!" Verge watched as two old lady fairies stepped out of a carriage pulled by two bunny rabbits. The fairy princess couldn't help but fly over, and as the two fairies stepped out of their carriage, she punched them both in their arms. They both fell to the floor with a thud.

The crowd gasped for a split moment but continued to cheer. The thin old lady sat up and chuckled first. "Send our hellos back to your father!"

Verge flew back to her seat with a grin. Boone stared at her.

The smaller Godmother approached Penn daintily. "Well, in my day, a man always wore a tie made of dandelions and moss!"

Penn just seemed bored. "Look, old lady—"

He didn't get a chance to continue. The woman punched him right in the face, and sent Penn flying back. He crashed into the vines that surrounded the ring and was flying back, only to get hit in the head by the woman's foot.

Verge watched, horrified, as her best friend got beat up. "Oh no, Zero!"

"Sashi!" Boone cried. "Penn needs your help!"

But the bigger fairy only leaned on the vines. "Nah, he's doing fine on his own." She continued to ignore Penn's screams.

"No, he's not! Tell her you need her help Penn!"

"Zero, grab her legs!"

Penn looked both serious and in pain as he said, "I'm _fine, _okay? No need to force Sashi to get her precious wings dirty!" He continued to scream in agony.

"Argh!" Verge looked frustrated and hurriedly pushed Sashi forward. Her hand touched Penn's, and a bell dinged out.

"_Ooh! Right in the nick of time!" _the voice announced. _"Wings of Destiny tags their partner! Good move!"_

Verge hurriedly helped Penn back to a seat and let him rest. "I could've handled it!" he groaned.

"And let you lose and/or die?" The brunette fairy huffed. "Not on my watch."

"Oh, you would be perfect for my nephew," the other Godmother said to Sashi. "I'll set up a dealer-

"Not interested, old lady!" Sashi grabbed the woman by the neck and started beating her up. She leaped up and pinned the woman down by sitting on her.

The referee came up and counted. "1, 2, 3!"

The bell dinged, the crowd cheered, Sashi stood up happily. "Yeah!"

"Way to go, Sash!" Verge cheered as well. The girls high-fived each other.

The part-time sidekick now looked at Penn. "And _that's _how you win. Try it sometime."

Penn rolled his eyes.

"No blaming anyone for anything," Verge scolded. "Let's focus on the next rounds."

The team got out of the way and let the next round begin. Penn and Sashi refused to speak to each other for the rest of the rest time they had.

Boone and Verge watched as the Hooded Pixie used some special pink dust to cause Rippen to change form. He was a lemon now and was complaining when his partner and the opponent stepped on him.

"So that's how they fight," Boone observed.

"It's so dirty," Verge said in disgust.

"Well, I suppose, with all the sweat and blood that could be spilled—"

"No I mean, the way the Hooded Pixie uses Rippen to cheat! Penn and Sashi are too blinded by their anger for each other to see that though…"

Boone frowned again. "What are we gonna do?"

"Not sure…they need help after the next round."

"Good! You do that!"

Verge glared. "Boone! I need you too!"

"But. my code!"

"But, your friends!"

The bell dinged, and Rippen and the Hooded Pixie won again.

In the fight against the Hairy Fairy, Penn leapt from the corner pole of the ring and was about to attack his opponent. The long-haired fairy swiped his long hair at Penn, causing him to mess up his attack. "Aim for his hair!" Verge yelled.

Sashi, who was too focused on lifting a weight, could care less about Penn's situation right now. Boone tried to pull her into helping, but she wouldn't give in.

The Hairy Fairy accidentally got his hair stuck in Boone, Verge, and Sashi, and before they knew it, all five of them got tangled up in the long strands of blonde hair. They found themselves caught in a ball that bounced across the vine ropes of the ring, and all of them were screaming. They seemed to be hurt. However, even if they were in pain, Sashi and Penn were still blaming and arguing with each other.

The bell dinged and the referee approached them. "Hairy Fairy, you're out. Wings of Destiny, you guys better untangle. The championship match starts in fifteen minutes!"

A fairy with a camera was live-streaming the whole thing and recorded the heroes in the hair ball and the Hooded Pixie walking up to them. "You are going down! Yeah!" He smiled at the camera wickedly. "What are you gonna do _when the Hooded Pixie cheats all over you?!"_

"Hope you guys are happy," Boone and Verge grumbled together.

"We have fifteen minutes to set this straight!" Verge huffed. "Boone?"

The part-time Wiseman rolled his eyes. "Despite being _well-aware _of my code, you've left me _no choice _but to get involved with _your stuff_ and _your things!"_

"Yes!" Verge grinned wickedly. "I was hoping for this." She retreated back into the hair ball, fumbled around a bit, and the Hairy Fairy's hair came apart and released the heroes. Verge flew out immediately and gestured to their rest area.

She somehow managed to already gather therapy beds made out of leaves and two counselors' seats for her and Boone. Penn and Sashi still looked frustrated with each other but both sat down in their respective beds. Boone sat near Sashi and looked comfortable.

"Nice one. How did you know I'd give in?"

Verge smirked and sat in the seat near Penn. "It was bound to happen."

Boone cleared his throat and pressed his fingertips together. "This is a safe place, okay? All emotions are valid!"

"I don't know what went wrong while you guys were at school," Verge added. "But maybe if we all let our frustrations out and figure out what's getting the way of you guys acting as a team again, all will be well!"

Penn scoffed at that. But, Sashi chose to be the bigger person and start the story. She sighed and crossed her arms. "We were partners for our Home Ec midterm."

"Okay, good…Zero?"

Penn looked at the brunette fairy, whose blue eyes were staring at him pleadingly. The part-time hero softened, and continued. "Our assignment was to work together to prepare a vegetable soup."

"I seasoned the broth with a fury of a thousand hurricanes!"

"And I was in charge of evenly chopping the vegetables! You know my middle name is Albert, but in this case, it should've been Perfection."

"I know your middle name is Albert," Verge frowned. "What was the point?"

"_The point is, _when it was time for our soup to be judged, the Coach apparently had a bad reaction to it because he was immediately sent to the hospital! On top of that, we both got Fs!"

At the same time, both Penn and Sashi got out of their therapy beds and pointed at each other accusingly. _"It was your fault!"_

"Wait a second," Verge pinched her eyelids. "Let me get this straight, you guys are both mad at each other because you think one of you messed up a _soup?"_

"_Duh!"_

"Oof, you guys are made for each other."

"_What?!"_

Boone held his hands out. "Hold on! What if I were to tell you that _neither _of you were at fault? You were so focused on your job, you didn't notice that I accidentally dumped salt, vinegar, hot sauce, molasses, sardines, probably some other stuff into your soup."

"Boone, just…" Verge stared blankly. _"What?"_

Penn and Sashi didn't even stare. They just squinted their eyes at the part-time Wiseman.

"Well, ah…that's all the time we have…" He looked away as he began to fly upwards, his legs still crossed. "Next session, ah, we can work on your threatening looks."

Verge cupped her hands over her mouth. "You do realize you have to tell your teacher!"

The looks on Penn and Sashi's faces when they looked at each other finally softened.

The brunette fairy stood from her seat. "Look, you guys are both very hard-headed—" They glared again. "—but today, you should've known better. You're both perfectionists, you should've known it couldn't have been either of you that did something wrong? Maybe someone sabotaged your soup or something. And even if it w_as _your fault, you're going to let it get in the way of your friendship? It's alright to get mad, but hold a grudge?"

And so, Penn and Sashi stared at the floor guiltily.

Penn was the first to speak after he sighed. "Verge is right…and Boone was, sort of right. I trust you with my life, I should probably trust you with seasoning."

"Yeah, this whole thing's pretty stupid," Sashi agreed. "Hearing it from Verge is letting me realize that."

"You're welcome!"

The big fairy rolled her eyes playfully and smiled at Penn. "I'll never doubt you again."

"Awww," Verge gushed, pulling them both for a hug. "I love you guys!"

Penn laughed lightly. "Sorry for this, Vergie. Things can be hard without your guidance."

Sashi nodded and smiled, a glint in his grin. "Ready to win this thing?"

"You bet."

They approached the ring, where the referee and the Unfairies waited. The crowd was cheering even more loudly than before.

"_Welcome to the championship match! Winner takes all!"_

Sashi and Penn were now beaming proudly and posing in front of the audience. Verge hooted for them and Boone smiled as he gripped the vine ropes.

Rippen was the first opponent and then approached the team, looking rather smugly. "With you and your enormous partner not speaking to each other, you don't stand a _chance _against—"

He didn't get to finish his sentence when Penn instantly tackled him with his feet first kicking the villain in the face and off the ring.

"_Yes!" _Verge and Boone cheered.

At the corner of her eye, Verge saw Larry run away with the referee. As gay as that sounded in her head, she knew that this was their other method of cheating. With the referee distracted, there was no way for him to realize the Unfairies were playing dirty. So she prayed in her heart that Penn and Sashi could win fairly.

The Hooded Pixie now turned Rippen into a bomb. "Yeah! Bomb's away!"

"Use your wings!" Verge shouted, just as the Hooded Pixie threw Rippen. But Penn and Sashi learned from their time in Fairy World, and flapped their wings as fast as they could. The Hooded Pixie tried running off. "I'm so proud right now."

Penn gave her a fist bump.

"Table this!"

The large pink fairy turned Rippen into a table and tried smacking Penn with him. He placed Rippen on top of Penn and banged his fists on his partner. "Ow!" Rippen shouted. "Cut that out!"

Penn also was in pain, but he pushed the table off him, making the Hooded Pixie fall on his back. This then gave Sashi the opportunity to body slam him, lift him up, spin him around, and throw him back over Rippen.

"_Nice one, Zero!" _Verge yelled, pounding her fist against her palm. _"Go Sashi! Make your enemies beg for mercy!"_

Boone frowned, shaking his head slowly as he pulled out a bag of chips. "I have always been afraid of you."

Sashi proceeded helping to hoist Penn up. "Finish him off, partner."

"Oops."

Boone apparently opened his bag of chips at the wrong time because Sashi stepped on them, slipped, and cried out before she and Penn passed out.

"Oh no!" Verge gasped, gripping the vine ropes. "Boone!"

"_I'm sorry!"_

"Zero, get up!"

Rippen laughed maniacally and body-slammed Penn. "So much for a fairy tale ending!"

"Get up, Penn!"

Rippen began to count down.

"A 1!"

"Get up!"

"A 2!"

"_Get up!"_

"A—"

The Hooded Pixie, with all of a sudden, forced Rippen off the blue fairy, and made him fall to the ground. The crowd began to cheer, but Verge and Boone were confused. "Huh?"

"_What _are you doing?!" Rippen demanded furiously. "I have to win so I can rule the forest!"

"Sorry, partner," the Hooded Pixie said, walking towards the fairy with the video camera. "Ever since I was a young fairy, I dreamed of cheating my way to the championship and pull off the ultimate cheat, and switch teams at the end!"

The crowd that once hated the Hooded Pixie now seemed to look at him sympathetically, as if the tone of his sentences was actually making it seem like he was a decent person. "Is anyone buying this," Verge deadpanned. Boone was also staring in confusion.

The Hooded Pixie sobbed and wiped the tears away. "I only wish my dad, the Bespectacle Pixie were here to see me cheat my way to not victory."

"I'm here, son!" A voice called out from afar, and Verge and Boone could see a wrestler-looking fairy wave towards the ring. "I snuck in!"

"Oh, daddy?!" The Hooded Pixie looked much more motivated now. "This is for you!"

As Rippen tried to crawl away, the Hooded Pixie gave a final leap and body-slammed Rippen with all his might. The crowd cheered as the villain was now passed out, and the Hooded Pixie casually placed Penn on top of him. The referee came and began to count down quickly. "Onetwothree!" He held Penn up by the wrist and the bell dinged.

"_Yes, we have it! The winners and new rulers of the forest, Wings of Destiny!"_

Sashi, who recovered from her fall, stood beside Penn and the two shrugged at each other. They pumped their fists and just cheered for themselves.

Boone and Verge also cheered in the sidelines. "Nice one, guys!" the manager hooted.

"I have no idea what happened!" Verge said cheerfully.

"We did it yeah!" the Hooded Pixie hooted. "Woohoo! We made it, we won! We took 'em down! Now this is what I call an un-fairy tale ending!" The Hooded Pixie knocked the fairy-cam down, ending the live-stream, and he just continued cheering for himself violently.

The four heroes blinked at the pixie and just shrugged at each other.

* * *

"How you acted today was—"

"Save your breath, Verge," Penn stuck his tongue out at his fairy friend as he buttoned his pajama top. He sat down on his bed and pulled the covers up. "I get what I did was wrong. Hey, Sashi was wrong too!"

"Don't start," Verge teased, taking her boots off. "You're the one I'm talking to right now, not Sashi." Penn rolled his eyes playfully. "I'm convincing Boone to talk to Coach. Hopefully he's merciful on your grade."

"We still have to cover his hospital bill, though."

"Sorry, can't help with that."

"Neither can I! Even though we work everyday, we never get paid!"

"Is it legal to start a strike on a part-time hero business?"

The two laughed together.

Penn sat at the edge of his bed. "So, what did you do today?"

"I learned all the names of my subjects in one afternoon."

"Aaand do you remember any of them?"

"Nope!"

The redhead laughed. "What a waste of time." He then hesitated. "Are you gonna go back there often?"

The brunette shrugged. "I have to. My parents expect me to start fulfilling my 'fairy princess duties'. I don't want to let them down."

Penn looked sad as he rubbed his arm. "I understand."

Verge leaned forward as she sat at the edge of the desk. "What's wrong?"

"It's nothing…it's just…what if one day you decide you want to stay forever? I mean, you've always been there to help sort my temper out, sort my feelings out…you were there when no one else was. What am I going to do, without you?" He intertwined his fingers and stared down at them.

The brunette fairy blinked multiple times. She stood from the desk, grew to human size, and sat down beside Penn. He raised his head and his cyan eyes gazed into her blue eyes. He was starting to feel awkward at how long and hard she was staring at him…

Suddenly, the fairy raised her hand and smacked his cheek. "You sound silly," she said blankly.

"Um, _ow?"_

"Zero, you remember what I said before…right?"

The part-time hero rubbed his cheek. "Yeah…"

He was even more surprised when the part-time fairy wrapped her arms around his waist. "I still mean it. Do you doubt me, still?"

Slowly, his arms also wrapped around her neck and rubbed her back, careful not to hurt her wings. "Alright…I'm sorry…I trust you. You know that, right?"

The brunette smiled lightly. "I know."

* * *

**23+ more episodes to go! I also only have 3 special episodes planned for this fanfic, so I hope that's all right :') Please remember to leave a favorite and a review, I really appreciate it! Thanks ya'll!**


	6. Sensitivity Training

**Episode 5: Sensitivity Training**

* * *

**Normally, I would post a special episode right after every fifth episode buuut…I'll reconsider.**

* * *

Unsurprising to others, Rippen didn't actually teach, and only told his students to express their artworks in their own manner. Of course, whenever they did, he would always fail them. Penn and Verge always liked to annoy Rippen with their wacky ideas, and it was Verge who told the redhead to paint on the ceiling and it was Penn's idea to draw paint himself in a godly form. The art teacher didn't seem to care either way, so the fourteen-year old boy just went at it. Boone already started sculpting a centaur version of himself and Sashi went for simple abstract art.

That morning, the heroes were working on their masterpieces when their teacher suddenly said, "Class, I want you to remember that trying is pointless, and that you're not good enough to succeed. Ever."

"Is he speaking out of personal experience?"

The class laughed, not even bothering to know who said that. Penn laughed as Verge, the one who spoke out, and her small head popped out. She did a tiny fist bump with him and smirked at Rippen.

The part-time villain, who knew exactly who the voice belonged to, squinted his eyes at the fairy.

Verge squinted back, as if having a silent conversation with him. _You can't call me out because I'm not your student._

_One of these days, Divergent…_

Suddenly, Boone seemed to drop his bucket of clay and it splattered all over Sashi's canvas. The hotheaded girl was instantly fuming. Boone clasped his hands together. "Okay…so that _may _have been my fault…" He smiled apologetically.

But Sashi was not so forgiving. She leapt up, kicked her foot at Boone's statue, and the head fell off its horse body.

The brunette boy shrieked his usual girly shriek as he knelt to the floor. "Centaur Boone, no!" He sobbed as he held the broke statue's head.

Rippen didn't even look swayed as he spoke. "That's it, Sashi, Boone, V—Penn, report to principal Larry's office."

"Wait, what did I do?" Penn exclaimed, seeking justice.

"Do you claim you weren't the one who made that terrible remark at my attempt to lecture the class?"

Penn opened his mouth to speak and immediately closed it, sighing as he got off his elevated ladder. Verge patted his hair from her position. "Sorry, Zero," she whispered. She glared at Rippen once again as the heroes left the room. _You snake._

Rippen only smirked. _Ha. Ha._

Once they were out, Verge quickly flew out of Penn's hair and slipped through the hole of his locker. She tinkered in there for a few seconds before opening the door. She flew back to Boone and handed him an orange candle labelled "In Loving Memory" and "Centaur Boone (Monday 8:32am-8:51am)". It had the statue's picture on it and everything.

Boone sniffed gratefully at the gift. "It's perfect," he whispered, bringing out a match to light the candle.

Penn and Sashi only stared in shock. "How did it only take a few moments for you to put that together?" Penn asked, dumbfounded. "And why was there even a candle in there? And—"

"Shhh Zero, I don't tell you everything."

They arrived at Principal Larry's office in short time, who was sitting behind his desk sorting out some pamphlets. The small part-time minion nearly lit up when he saw the heroes. "Hi Penn! Hi Boone! Hi Sashi! Hi Verge! Come outta there you little rascal, this is a safe environment!"

The fairy did fly out of Penn's hair and grew to human size but she was still reluctant. "I don't have my vest today—"

"Sit down, sit down!" The four went to do so, with Verge sitting at Penn's right. "I don't often get guests! Well, I technically do, since Rippen's always sending people here. And come to think of it this isn't the first time I saw you four here, also I'm pretty sure you were here yesterday—"

"We're here," Penn interrupted hastily. "because Sashi destroyed Boone's artwork."

"Not after he destroyed mine first!" the brunette yelled, standing up from her seat.

Boone only hung his head over the mourning candle. "I didn't even get to finish the right arm…"

"You know this reminds me of a story!" Larry piped up, as Sashi sat back down to look away angrily with her arms crossed. "I was in the cereal section of a supermarket and I found that in one of the boxes, you could get a free tattoo! I dug through _six _boxes and _still _couldn't find that dang temporary tiger fighting a dragon tattoo! Then the clerk said, 'Sir, you need to pay for those _before _opening them? Also, those are boxes of cat food also, this is a dream—'"

"I don't mean to change the non-subject," Penn interrupted again. "But shouldn't we be talking about why we're here?"

"_And how exactly," _Verge started, her wings fluttering as she squinted. "did Sashi's situation remind you of that?"

Larry just shrugged, a smile still on his face.

"I can tell you!" Sashi said loudly, glaring at the person beside her. _"Boone _is like a moronic tornado ruining _everything in his path!"_

"Again, that didn't really relate to my question—but right, Penn's question, that's fine I guess."

"You know Sashi," Larry began, leaning on his table. "Let me tell you a little story. This one time I was on the football water boy squad. _No one _would try my homemade water. Said they only wanted _regular water. _So that's what I gave them…"

The tone of his voice at the last sentence made Verge shiver. "What's your point?"

"I learned to overcome my anger by learning how to express my feelings!" The principal took one of the pamphlets he had been sorting earlier and handed one to Sashi. "I got so good at it that I now teach a workshop: 'Dare to Care and Share with Principal Larr…y'!"

Sashi sighed in exasperation. "Let me guess. You're gonna make me go there for detention, aren't you?"

"Don't be silly! I'm makin' all of you go!"

Verge cleared her throat. "Riiight but I'm not a student? So…"

"You better go too, or else I'm never letting you hug Tony again!" He said it so cheerfully, it was hard to tell it was a threat.

The four exchanged worried glances just before the bell rang.

"Time for your second period!" Larry sang. "Ya'll better get going. " He made them stand up and pushed them out of his office. "See you four tonight, at the gym!" With his final word, he slammed the door.

"Huh," Penn said blankly. "Guess we're going."

Boone shrugged. "Good thing we don't have work today?"

* * *

That night, the four heroes were seated cross-legged on the gym floor, along with other schoolmates and even adults they didn't recognize. A wheel was placed somewhere not too far from the circle they made. Verge was seated in between Penn and Boone, and was tugging at her red vest nervously. Penn was the first to speak up. "You know, Sash, maybe this isn't gonna be as bad as you think. It could actually help you!"

"A, I don't need help, and B, clearly no one _else _wants to be here either."

Just then, the lights dimmed, the people in the workshop began cheering, and a sudden spotlight was pointed at the gym's seats. Larry was at the very top, and he seemed to be attached to a rope and had a shiny red cape behind him. He also had a mini mic hung on his ear – the ones they use in theaters and plays – and he spoke into it as he jumped off the seats and flew down to his class. "Welcome to Dare to Care and Share with Principal Larr…"

"…Y!" The crowd cheered loudly for the small man, but Penn and Sashi looked confused.

Verge pouted and crossed her arms. "He could've asked me to handle special effects. Or help him fly down here easily. Everyone would've loved it."

Penn looked to his right and looked even more confused. "Uncle Chuck, Aunt Rose. What are you guys doing here?"

"Larry's helping us with some issues we're having with the Chinchilla," Uncle Chuck replied.

Aunt Rose picked up the small animal and cooed at it. "Who's an emotionally complex the Chinchilla? You are!"

The Chinchilla very clearly wanted to get away from her. Penn and Verge exchanged looks. "Can't blame him for anything," she remarked. The redhead h=nodded solemnly.

Larry pressed a button on a keyboard nearby and suddenly had a mic in his hand now and for some reason, began singing to a beatbox beat.

"_In a funk, and you don't know why_

_You get so mad you wanna cry_

_How would you like a slice of baloney pie?_

_Let's talk about our feelings!"_

"Let's not," Sashi grumped. "And never say we did."

The principal just rushed over to the wheel from earlier. "It's time for the Wheel of Feels and our first exercise! Aunt Rose?"

The woman stood and went to spin the wheel happily. "Ooh, so exciting I can't stand it!"

The wheel landed on the words "Nose to Nose".

"Ooh, nose to nose!"

"Is that literal?" Verge wondered aloud. She suddenly grabbed Penn's head and pressed her nose against his.

Penn's cheeks instantly turned red and he pulled away, covering his nose. "Verge!"

"Are we done here?"

"It doesn't work like that, dum-dum!" Larry sang. He made Verge stand and placed her beside a random girl. "Eyes are like mouths. Let them do the talking! But uh, don't let them do the eating. Truuust me on that one."

Penn was with Aunt Rose, Boone was with Uncle Chuch, Sashi was with the Chinchilla, which then lead Verge to meet someone new. She sighed as she faced the girl before her, and she recognized her as one of Penn's classmates. She had brown hair, small eyes, and big glasses. "Uh, hi," Verge said awkwardly.

"Hello," the girl said in a shy voice. She smiled politely. "I see you often, but never in any classes."

"Oh, uh…" Verge rubbed the back of her neck. "It's a long story…"

"You're always with Penn too."

"Zero? Ah yeah! We're best friends! We work together too. And—"

"Are you his girlfriend?"

The word turned Verge's pale skin to color a bright pink. "What? No!"

The girl sighed. "That's good."

This caused the fairy's lips to curl a little. "Good…?"

Something in her chest caused her a bit of pain, but before she could dwell on it any further, she heard sobbing, and Verge looked over her shoulder and saw Chuck and Boone, bawling their eyes out. The two girls blinked at them. "I'm pretty sure they were just staring at each other…"

"I guess that's how this works," Verge sighed. "Larry, can we move on?"

"Sure Vergie!" the principal said cheerfully. "Why don't you spin next?"

So she did. Verge spun the wheel and it landed on the words "Emoti-Sculpt".

Moments later, every had their own buckets of clay and were making their own works of art. Boone was happily creating another Centaur Boone. Verge, who was making a sculpture of her on top of a hawk victoriously, sighed as she read the name on Boone's statue. "You spelled centaur wrong again."

"Sometimes I use clay to sculpt my feelings!" Larry cut in. "The rest of the time I use it as peanut butter."

Penn, who was at a table with a sign "Free "PB" + J sandwiches", was chewing on one and gagged. He spit out his bite and Verge secretly summoned some water for him to drink. He choked out a "thank you" and it was Boone's turn to spin.

The words landed on "Nose to Nose" again, but this time, Larry said, "Let's do a mix up! Be in a group of four and try to act as them!"

"Huh?" Verge scratched her head. "So like…hi I'm Sashi and I have the habit of fighting with everyone, being mean, and losing my temper everytime someone messes with me."

Penn, Sashi, and Boone blinked at their fairy friend. "Accurate," Boone coughed.

"Aaaand swap back roles!" Larry called out.

Verge shook her head. "I can't do this."

"What?" Penn protested. "Unfair—"

Sashi looked annoyed as she sighed and said in a bored tone, "Hello, I'm Penn Zero. Let's take a moment to admire my hair."

Penn looked annoyed. "Okay, I have never asked you to admire my—"

Boone hummed and he and Verge both nodded simultaneously.

The redhead threw his hands in the air exasperatedly. _"Ha, okay, one time _and that's suddenly who I am? Fine." He began speaking in a deeper, dumber voice. "Hi Sash, it's me Boone, and I—"

"_Boone! You're over twenty minutes late!"_

Boone's friends were all shocked to hear he did a perfect personation of Sashi's actual voice. "Wow!" Verge and Penn said together.

Penn smiled. "You sound _just like—Ah!" _

He moved back a bit when Boone held up a fist towards his face. _"Don't change the subject, unless you want me to change where your nose sits on your face!"_

"Sorry, Sash…"

"_I don't want you to be sorry! I want you to be _smarter!"

"Alright, alright, alright!" Penn wiped Boone's saliva off his face. "I'll be smarter!"

"Hey, lay it off a bit there," Verge started.

Boone only glared at her, still talking in Sashi's voice. "_You always stand up for Penn, Verge, don't go standing up for him too!"_

"Hey!" The fairy pouted and crossed her arms angrily. "Real Sashi wouldn't fight with me!"

Real Sashi was looking a bit sad now. "I don't really sound like that, do I?"

Penn looked sympathetic. "You don't spit nearly as much but, yeah."

Boone shrugged, also looking apologetic. Verge just looked away and rubbed the back of her neck. Sashi did the same, and sadly rubbed her arm.

"That's all the time we have for today guys!" Larry announced. "See you all for the next session!" He waved a hand happily as everyone began piling out of the gym, including the four heroes.

Sashi was quick to get home. "I need some re-evaluation…"

"Good night, Sash!" Verge called out, but she wasn't sure if Sashi heard her. She and the two boys glanced at each other nervously.

* * *

The next day after school, Sashi made an announcement at the zap platform. "I think you guys are gonna be pleasantly surprised! I've battled old, angry Sashi into submission."

As she pressed her palms together and close her eyes, Boone was attempting to blow a huge bubble with his bubblegum. Penn immediately got out of the way and ducked to avoid being hit, but Verge was still listening to Sashi. "New, calm Sashi is in total control of her—"

"Ah!" The quick second she saw the huge bubble, Verge moved out of the way and it hit her boot, later splattering all over Sashi. The Japanese girl clenched her fists and her face was distorted into an expression of weird anger, as she tried to keep a smile on her face.

Boone smiled sheepishly. "My bad!" He moved closer and started chewing the gum on her hair.

Verge fake-gagged. "Ew, Boone. Ew."

But Boone only chewed. "I like new Sashi."

Phyllis didn't care and zapped them.

* * *

When they were surrounded by water, Verge was almost afraid, but then she saw her mermaid tail and golden skin. Boone was holding a pearl in his claws as Penn hooted as he swam about in his fish form. "Haha! Hoho, yeah! It's great to be back in Oshcacapapoopalop!"

Sashi was already looking mad. "It's pronounced—" Suddenly, she stopped herself and whispered. "Nope…gonna let it go." She smiled widely and laughed lightly. "Let's just get to the mission, _buddies!"_

"Great! Right after a bathroom break."

As Penn went off to be confused at the bathroom signs, Verge put a hand on Sashi's shoulder. "Look, Sash, it's okay to learn when to be calm but don't lose sight of yourself."

The girl only maintained her smile. "What are you talking about? I won't! I'm still me! The new me!"

Boone shook his head and tapped Verge's head with his claw. "This is one of those moments when the character learns the moral at the end of the episode!"

Verge frowned. "Uh…okay?"

"Never again…" Penn swam back to them, a regretful expression on his face as he came out of the comfort rooms. "Sash, just check the Specs…"

"Okay!" Sashi pointed at Boone's claws. "We have to place that magic pearl in a shrine deep in the sea cave before Rippen and his army stop us! Pretty straightforward, so let's do this quick."

"Hello!" Everyone jolted back when a giant fish stepped out of that sea cave, and everyone found him pretty recognizable. "How it's goin'?"

"Oh great!" Penn said in fake enthusiasm. "It's Rufus…do I even wanna know what you're doing out here?"

"The tale leading to my happening upon this place is a long and storied one!"

"Ha-tut-tut! I'm gonna cut you off right there, 'cause we don't have time for this."

"No," Sashi suddenly said. "It's better to hear people out! Maybe he has valuable information!"

"Thank you!" Rufus said happily. "It—"

"Well, good night." Verge somehow pulled up a lounge chair, lay down on it, and began snoring soundly. Penn, Boone, and Sashi exchanged looks.

Rufus kept his story up for a long time. He just kept dragging on and on and it seemed like he was getting more boring by the minute. Eventually, the other three fell asleep right beside Verge's chair. When he finally finished, Penn shook Verge awake as Sashi kept her smile.

"Very good…now can we go?"

"Oh you won't be going anywhere!" The quartet turned to see Octopus Rippen, Giant Squid Larry, and the octopi army with their weapons, gathered around the heroes. This caused Verge to bolt straight up. "Octopus people, attack—"

Suddenly, a shadow loomed over them and a giant shriek sounded out. A shark monster appeared out of nowhere and began chasing the heroes and the army. Everyone was yelling as they tried to swim away as fast as they could. Sashi and Larry seemed to be lucky, but the shark swallowed Penn, Boone, Verge, Rufus, and Rippen whole. They all yelled as they fell in and stayed inside the shark's stomach together.

"Oh no!" Verge cried out. "I thought animals loved me!"

Penn only sighed. "Well. We're _still alive."_

"Hopefully Sashi and Larry can save us!" Boone prayed.

"Sashi and Larry, if you can hear me!" Rippen yelled. "Sashi's in charge! I repeat, _Sashi is in charge!"_

"Dude, seriously?" Verge rolled her eyes.

Suddenly, they all felt like the belly of the shark monster was shaking. "Ah!" Penn yelped. "What's going on? Feels like we're moving up!"

"Sashi is in charge! Do you hear me Larry? _Sashi is in charge!"_

"Argh, what's going on out there?!" Verge punched at the shark monster's stomach walls once and instantly pulled her hand back. "No…I have a code too…never hurt an animal unless necessary…or let Sashi do it and just complain."

"Is that your actual code?" Penn joked. "Don't worry, she'll get us out of here…I hope."

"Either way, you guys will fail the mission! And I'll win!" Rippen began to laugh maniacally.

The merfairy squinted her eyes. "Does Rippen count as an animal?"

Boone shrugged. "Technically, right now, yes."

Ripped squinted at Verge back. _Nice try._

_I hate you._

_I also hate you._

"Oh what a journey I have gone through to get here!" Rufus proclaimed. "What a tale to tell my people. What warnings I must bestow—"

"Quiet, Rufus!" Penn said, annoyed. "Geez, forgot you were here."

"I know you're an animal, but please shut up…"

All of a sudden, they felt another force entering the shark's stomach, and a bright-smiled, Giant Squid Larry beamed to see all of them. "Oh, hey fellas!"

Simultaneously, the five said, "Hi Larry…"

The body began to move more, and it felt like they were back in the water. "Progress, progress," Boone mused.

"Hold on guys…" Penn held a finger up. "Yep. Looks like we're still in here."

"I hope Sashi knows what she's doing," Verge sighed.

"She does!" Larry reassured. "I saw her talk to that three-eyed seagull! She was in total control!"

"Say what now," Rippen deadpanned.

The shark monster's body began moving again, and suddenly Sashi's angry grunts and noises became louder. "I hear her!" Penn cheered.

"It sounds like she's in the shark herself," Verge's eyes widened a bit, clearly amused.

"Incoming!" Boone cried out.

A force seemed to push the heroes and villains straight tout of the shark monster's belly and back into the water where they could be free. Verge gasped for air (er, water). "Hoo, that was so much worse than being stuck in a cage."

"Haha, we're free!" Larry cheered. He then grabbed Rippen. "Hug alert!"

The part-time villain was eager to break free. "Oh—Larry, no!"

"See?" Sashi said in satisfaction, swimming up to them. "It's not about never getting angry. It's about _when _to get angry." She winked knowingly, causing her friends to smile.

Verge tackled her in the water and went it for a big hug. "Proud of you," she beamed. Sashi hugged back willingly. When she pulled away, she held her hand out. "Okay, Boone! Just give us the pearl and we can return it to its shrine!"

The Wiseman suddenly looked embarrassed. "Ohhh, right….Miiiight've left it in the shark…"

Sashi glared at him immediately. "Boone!" Before she could hit him, she took a deep breath and spoke calmly. "It's okay, an honest mistake by a friend is a time for calm…"

"Though, I think it's time for you to get angry again," Verge heard the mean shark monster's remarks about Sashi's attempt to be reasonable, and smirked as she gestured at the same monster, who was rubbing her head.

Sashi got a glint in her eye. "You're right, Verge. _Defeating my enemies is a time for anger!"_

"No! Not in my brain again—!" Sashi beat around in there for a bit until the monster spat her out with the pearl. Penn, Verge, and Boone grinned and followed her into the shrine, where she placed it in its proper place.

The pearl glowed brightly, completing their mission.

"Hey, nice use of judgement, Sashi," Penn praised. "And brain punching! Haha!"

* * *

As the heroes got zapped back to their world, Verge ruffled Sashi's head while still flying over her head. "Thought I lost my girl best friend for a sec."

Sashi pushed her hand away and smirked. "Never."

* * *

**I was supposed to put this chapter off for another day but eh HAHA I really need to get a lot done quickly. Hope you still enjoyed!**

**Also…should I continue drawing my designs for Verge in my deviantart account? Idk it's kinda a hassle for me…whew**


	7. The Bewildering Bout etc

**Episode 6: The Bewildering Bout of the Astounding Automatons**

* * *

**Ok I MIGHT post the special episode after this one! Just a warning, it's all about Verge and Fairy World!**

**Also, why do the new episodes have long titles :')))**

* * *

The teachers at Middleburg High were giving away free car washes, which included having the students to act. Since it was a wing-soaking disaster waiting to happen, Verge was at Fairy World once again. This time, the King and Queen gladly gave her a tour, and the fairy princess enjoyed the wonders of the different seasonal valleys. She saw Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter, all in one large world. She marveled at her working fairies that were all gathered to prep for the next season.

Some fairies waved at her. She waved back.

When they arrived back in the palace, Verge couldn't help doing a loop in the air. "Fairy World is so much more incredible than I imagined!"

King Lauqui chuckled. "If you think it's that great, wait until you start working."

There was a twinkle in Verge's blue eyes. "I get to work?"

"Yes," Queen Lareon replied. "As you very much know, you were a true blessing to this world of ours, and were fated to assist the fairies of each kind, since you possessed every single fairy talent. Moreover, you can create your own dust! Did you know fairies have to rely on dust from the Pixie Dust Tree?"

Remembering a certain dust keeper fairy she'd encountered a long time ago, Verge shivered. "Yeah…well, I'm at least excited to be with my subjects!"

"That's my girl!" The King ruffled Verge's pigtails. "We can get started—"

"Maybe the next time I come here? It's time for work in the other dimension! With Zero, and Sashi and Boone!"

At this, King Lauqui and his wife exchanged a look, and Queen Lareon smiled politely. "You sure like this Zero, my dear."

"Of course I do! He's my best friend!"

Her dad cleared his throat. "Verge…I just hope you keep in mind…whether this information may be of use to you or not…"

"Yeah?"

"A fairy and a human can never be."

The fairy blinked. She had no idea why her father would share such detail to her, but she found it in her heart to just keep it memorized. "Alright, dad."

Her mom kissed her forehead. "Go on to work now. You must always remember: you have a purpose. You must always get the urge to fulfill it, no matter what."

Verge beamed, nodded, hugged her parents, and zapped back home.

* * *

She arrived in front of the Odyssey just in time to see Penn, Boone, and Sashi walking to work. She turned smaller, hoping to surprise them, but stopped herself when she heard Penn's complaining.

"The bucket backpack! Another terrible idea courtesy of Boone Inc.!" The redhead held the door open for the other two and Verge sneaked into his hair. "Well, at least Rippen still got soaked, thanks to Larry. Or should I call him, Rippen's Boone?" He laughed at his own little joke.

"Whatchu talkin' about?" Verge poked her head out of Penn's hair and let it dangle so Penn was looking at her while she was upside down.

"Verge! When did you get back?"

"I don't tell you everything! Now tell me what happened."

Sashi rolled her eyes a bit. "Penn and Boone tried to be stupid and failed at it."

"Hey!" Boone said defensively. "Don't you mean I got even more stupid?"

"Let's just zap properly today and hope nothing else goes wrong?" Penn suggested through a forced smile.

Verge frowned. Wow, she must've missed a lot.

Without another word, Phyllis zapped them in.

* * *

When they arrived in the new world, Verge immediately felt creaky. She moved her arms and legs and found that she was golden-skinned. No, golden-metalled. Her whole body was made of metal, and when she looked at her reflection in the glass, she saw she was actually a robot! The only thing that was still the same about her was her pair of golden wings. "Sweet!" she cheered, actually liking her new form. Even her voice was a bit robot-y.

Boone, who was wearing a lab coat and had wacky hair, looked around and said, "Whoa! A dimension that looks like my grandma's garage?"

Verge scratched her head. "Well, it _is _kind of old-timey looking here."

"Yeah, the world did a number on you!" He poked the fairy's stomach, who huffed and flapped her wings. "Penn? Sashi?"

"What's this?" Verge landed on the only machine that was on a desk beside Boone. She eyed the item atop of it, wondering to herself why it looked like Sashi's Specs.

"Hey, music box!" Boone beamed, beginning to wind up the crank beside it. The machine whirred to life instantly and Verge flew off of it.

"Boone, Verge, it's me!"

The two immediately recognized the voice as the part-time sidekick's. "Sashi?" Verge gasped. "Wow! What a twist."

"Lookin' good Sash!" Boone pointed out. "You make gears and old-timey stuff work." He winked playfully.

A metal hand moved by the Sashi machine. "Save it! Alright, this is the city of Retrofuturopolis. You are a white inventor, and I am your trusty mechanograin engine. Verge is the robot fairy, of course, who is to guide you and make sure your inventions go right. You have to build an automaton. Your automaton must win a boxing match against an evil automaton created by an evil inventor. If the evil automaton wins, it will be mass-produced into an evil army that'll take over the world!"

"Oh, wings, the pressure."

"We get the same amount of pressure nearly everyday, Verge."

"Fun," Boone smiled, as if thinking this was all a mere game. "Where's Penn?"

If Sashi could make expressions, she could've looked deadpan. "He's the automaton you have to build."

"_What?!" _Boone and Verge exclaimed at the same time and glanced at the desk a few feet away from them. All the automaton parts and blueprints were there, waiting for them to start working.

"That's a _crazy _twist!" the part-Wiseman cried.

"This is insane!" Verge's wings fluttered more. "I can't help Boone without Penn! I know nothing about technology!"

"Celebratory salutations, master inventor!" Boone quickly grabbed Verge, who yelped and was hidden in his pocket, as he turned around and saw a man that looked like he was part-automaton himself. Larry was walking beside him with his own automaton parts and blueprints in a box. "It is I, Mayor DiReginald Hindenburg. I say, we're a wee bit short on automaton assembly workspace. Would you mind terribly if your rival builds the opponent for your upcoming grudge match right here by your side?" The mayor chuckled and turned away. "I thought not! Cheerio! I'm off! Oh! Look at me, I'm flying! I'm flying! I have a balloon as part of my body!"

"What a weird mayor," Verge commented, flying out of Boone's pocket.

"Tell me about it!" Larry piped.

Sashi began to speak. "Boone, you can't let a villain work in our wor…" Suddenly, her machine body began to shut down, and would be in need of cranking again.

"What was that Sashi?" Boone questioned.

"She needs to be wound up again!" Verge said, trying to do a backflip in the air. She started to frown when she realized she didn't turn bigger. "What—"

"It must be because your body is physically metal?" Boone wondered, rubbing his chin. "Would make sense on why you can't get bigger!"

"But—"

"Man, it's been pretty lonely here since I haven't built Rippen yet!" Larry suddenly said.

The brunette boy smiled. "I know! It feels so different without the Jazz Man."

"What?" Verge frowned.

"Penn kept saying 'jazz' today. Dunno why! But that's what Penn makes me call him."

"Uh-huh…but hey, I'm still here."

"Hmm, but maybe it's good that it's different! We need to focus on building these robots!" It seemed like he was only talking to Larry.

"Yep! Time to focus!"

"Great, okay, then you guys should get working!" Verge was already getting impatient and her wings fluttered furiously.

"Hey, chillax, Vergie!" The part-time Wiseman suddenly grabbed her body and pressed something against her back. "You should get some sleep too! Leave it to the Wiseman!"

"Wait, what?!" Verge suddenly did feel sleepier, and it was then did she realize she had an on-off switch. "Boone! You did not just—"

Her voice trailed off and everything went black.

* * *

The next day, on the day of the automaton wrestling match, Boone had finally finished building Penn and was now wound up and ready to rumble. "Hi guys! Ah, you have _no_ idea how weird it was not being built."

"Pretty sweet, huh? I built you!"

"Uhhh…" Penn glanced down at himself and began to have his doubts. "Ah, great. Then I should work about as well as the _buckpack." _At this, Boone frowned. "Wait a minute, wasn't Verge supposed to help you build me? Or Sashi? Where are they?"

"Off to sleep!"

"What?! Where?"

"Well, uh, Sashi's back in the workspace, and Verge is in my pocket."

"_Please _bring our part-time fairy guide _out."_

Boone reached into his coat and Verge was there, still in shut-down mode. When the Wiseman pressed her button, she whirred to life once more. Her wings flapped once, twice, before she flew off his hand and right up his face. _"You did _not _just turn me off."_

The boy shrieked his girly shriek and held up his hands. "Sorry! I thought you needed a rest!"

"I never felt so useless! It feels so weird being off!"

Penn huffed. "Tell me about it."

"Lookin' shiny, Zero."

"I could say the same about you, robot fairy dear!"

The two stuck their tongues out at each other.

Mayor DiReginald began to speak to the audience. "Whichever combatant is the first to separate the other from his head, wins! Automatons, commence pugilism!" A bell dinged out, and a robot lady carrying a sign labeled "Round One" move forward.

"Good luck," Verge whispered, as Penn and Rippen began to walk towards each other.

The moment their boxing gloves met, their bodies came apart underneath them.

The audience gasped. Boone and Verge gasped as well and pulled Penn back to fix him. Larry did the same with Rippen.

"Guys?" Penn blinked. "I think there's something wrong here."

"Don't worry, Penn!" Boone reassured. "We got this!"

Round the 2nd began. Rippen pressed a button on his wrist and a gush of sand hit Penn's robot face. As sand got in the part-time hero's eyes, he used a blue fan to shield himself.

But Rippen punched him right in the face, laughing evilly. That punch however, caused the glove to come off and hit the bell, signaling the end of the round.

"And that concludes the end of the round!" the Mayor announced.

The crowd seemed to not be impressed by what was going on.

"Oh wings," Verge muttered.

Penn panted as he sat back down in his corner. "Paper shields? Really?"

"I don't know what gets into me," Boone said sadly as he leaned on the ring's ropes. "I was all like, paper shields would be totally confusing to Rippen, giving the Jazz Man the advantage he needs to win…so stupid."

Boone looked so sad, that the anger Verge felt at him for shutting her down earlier completely melted away. She sat on the boy's shoulder and patted it. "Look, Boone, you're not useless. And not all your ideas are stupid. You actually have good thinking most times! It gets in the way in other times but, you're still a valuable member to the team."

"She's right," Penn put in, sighing. "Look, I was outta line buddy. Truth is, I couldn't win these missions without you. I—We, need all your weird ideas that no one else would ever think of, and I need them now more than ever."

Their words brought back the big smile on Boone's face. "You got it Penn!"He reached over and pretended to make the robot speak. _"Thanks, Boone._ And thanks, Verge."

The fairy smiled and did a tiny fist bump with him.

* * *

The rest of the rounds went by like a song **((A/N: Sorry for the joke and for the laziness HAHAHA)).** The Mayor suddenly began rapping and it was very unclear on who was winning the boxing match, since both robots had their weird ways of attacking one another. Verge did her best to help Boone put Penn together when he needed fine-tuning. Despite her lack of knowledge in tech, she still tried to assist the part-time Wiseman.

At around Round 11, Penn tried to fire another object, but was confused at what he got. "Uh, Boone? This looks like a croissant!"

"That's French for boomerang!"

"Sounds good!" Penn threw the bread and it flew off. It missed Rippen, and unfortunately hit himself instead.

"Zero!" Verge cried, flying over to pick up the few screws that came loose. "Keep it together, man!"

The robot only groaned in frustration.

"A mop? Larry?!"

"So you can _mop the floor with him!"_

"…Whatever."

Tossing the mop aside, Rippen came up and pinned him down with one fist, the other one raised high. "Despite Larry's absolutely terrible work, I'm still going to defeat you." He laughed as he punched Penn's face repeatedly.

"It's _time _to win, Penn!" Boone called out. Verge nodded, her robot hands clasped together.

Penn kept feeling his head come off. He had no choice but to listen. A tiny metal Boone popped out from his shoulder and said, "Prop in the clock, and set the hands to three."

"Okay…I'm gonna trust Boone."

The automaton did exactly that, and the clock he had turned out to be a cuckoo clock. The little bird hit Rippen in the face numerous times. At the final hit, he fell to the floor, and the mop he had earlier said, "Exploding mop device activated."

"What."

There was a huge blast and Rippen's head came right off. The Mayor approached Penn happily and held his arm upwards. "Top Hat Bot wins!"

Unfortunately for Penn, his arm came off his body.

"Larry! Why didn't you say it was an exploding mop?!"

"You didn't ask!"

"…I didn't ask…"

Verge flew up to Penn and hugged his automaton head. "You did it!

The hero chuckled. "Well. Couldn't have done it without you and Boone."

"See you later, Larry's Penn!" Larry had suddenly hopped onto a balloon with Boone, and the two floated off together.

Until they hit another balloon and crashed into the city.

"That's gonna leave a mark," Penn rolled his eyes playfully. Verge laughed and reached her hand out to tiny fist bump him. Penn used his other arm to do it.

But accidentally punched her away. "Sorry!"

* * *

As the heroes exited the Odyssey, Sashi was shuddering. "It felt so weird being useless today."

"You weren't useless!" Penn defended. "You…um…" Sashi glared at him, daring to continue the sentence. The redhead smiled nervously and patted her shoulder. "You were there."

Boone sighed. "I'm sorry I left you off, Sash. And shut you down, Verge."

The fairy sighed as she grew bigger. "It's okay. I just felt a bit bad when I realized I'm not always going to be in on your inside jokes and stories. I'm not _always _around, and I hate that I know that but can't do anything about it."

"Aw geez, Verge," Penn said, smiling a bit. "You don't have to feel bad about that! We have our jokes and problems but we'll never exclude you from our group. Intentionally, at least!"

"Besides," Sashi nudged their fairy friend. "You can't complain entirely. Remember the 'trusty' mechanograin I tried to be today? Thanks to a certain someone?"

"I said I was sorry!" Boone complained.

The four laughed together.

"Hey, you could stay around with us more if you weren't going to Fairy World so much nowadays!" Penn had meant for it to be a joke, but Boone and Sashi could clearly see where his intentions lay.

Verge, however, just pushed him lightly. "Ha! You wish!" She chuckled as she put her vest on and started to walk ahead. "Let's get some dinner, I'm starving!"

Penn exchanged looks with Boone and Sashi. The three of them were frowning.

* * *

**Will the special episode be after this one? Who knoooows? OoO**


	8. A Day In the Life of A Fairy Princess

**Special Episode: A Day In the Life of A Fairy Princess**

* * *

**HERE IT ISSS THE FIRST SPECIAL EPISODE PLS ENJOYYYY**

* * *

It was a Friday morning, and Penn was getting ready to leave the house. He was quite reluctant since he had nearly four quizzes that day. It also meant he would have to leave Verge home. He was yawning as he slipped his backpack on and opened the door to his bedroom. "You'll be alright here, right, Verge? I hate leaving you alone at home."

"Of course!" Verge said, waving a hand. "I'm heading downtown to volunteer for the animal shelter anyway. Don't worry about me!"

"Alright, ya little rascal." He patted her on the head. Even in her human form, the fairy was surprisingly short, much to her disappointment, and she pouted when Penn laughed. "Don't go too far!"

"I won't."

The redhead left the room, closing the door behind him.

At that, Verge turned, holding her MUHU, and twisted the ring around the screen. It switched to its MUT mode, and immediately the screen glowed and showed the background of Fairy World in it.

Smiling, Verge got her leaf slingbag, put it around her neck, and zapped herself in.

* * *

When she arrived, the fairy princess realized she was in the Summer Valley, she found herself instinctively flying her way back to her parents' palace. She had only visited Fairy World at most more than three times but it was like her memories of her past were coming back to her. Fairies of different talents were working hard at their jobs when some noticed and waved at her.

Verge waved back happily.

The fairy princess felt bad for lying to her friends, but they were always telling her that she was spending more time in the Fairy Dimension. She had to play it safe and let them know she wasn't getting...well, addicted.

She got back to the castle, flying through the window to the throne room. She found the King sitting on his throne, looking through some scrolls as a fairy in a blue dress was holding them up. King Lauqui was so immersed in his reading he didn't notice his daughter's arrival. "Yes, well, wouldn't we all like some sunglasses around here…"

"Dad!" Verge flew over in a second and tackled her father into a hug in his seat.

The King was very surprised. "Oh, my darling!" He instantly hugged back, much to his shock. "What a lovely fright you gave me there."

The thirteen-year old fairy laughed. "Where's Mom?"

"She's off at her palace in Winter Woods. Winter is only a few months away, after all!"

"Wait, you have a palace in the Winter Woods too?"

"Why, yes!" King Lauqui finally rolled his scroll up, placed it in his assistant's arms, and waved her off. "Long ago, Warm fairies and Winter fairies could not cross the border that separates the heat and the cold. It was very dangerous! But many years ago, warm fairies started wearing coats in winter woods and winter fairies created protective frost coats for their wings to wear in the warm valleys. It started becoming a big trend until children of warm and winter began to emerge, and fairies just naturally became genetically used to crossing over!"

"Wow, that's amazing!" Verge gaped. "So are you and Mom children of both?"

"Well, in truth, I was originally a purebred warm fairy and your mother was purebred winter. But at your birth, your abilities were strong enough to magically share your power to cross both borders to us!"

"That's…strangely unnatural!"

King Lauqui chuckled as he directed his daughter to the window that faced Winter Woods. "Yes, indeed, it is complicated. But that's just one of the many mysterious gifts you brought this land. At your birth, the lands seemed to prosper even more. The amount of pixie dust grew, the animals were more cooperative! We celebrated your arrival for ten days because our success rate grew to 20%!"

"Geez," Verge laughed light and rubbed the back of her head. "I wasn't that special, was I?"

"You were, and still are, very special." Her father rubbed Verge's thick brown hair, and she smiled. "This is why the hawks wanted to take you away from us. But now you are here for good. As the princess of Fairy World, I want you to understand how important it is to rule your subjects and continue to be a blessing to us all."

The weight of his words seemed to make Verge's heart drop, but she still stood up straight in anticipation. "I'll do whatever it takes, Dad. When can I start?"

"Well, as you said, we can start working now! Which fairy talent would you like to help first?"

"Um, first off, how exactly am I helping…?"

"Since autumn is nearing, we are going to be helping our fairy subjects in Autumn Plains! I believe some animal fairies are busy tending to our animals."

"Cool! I love animals! Let's go!"

She was the one who was practically pulling her father out the palace window.

The two fairies flew above the wide-open plains and from above, Verge marveled at the sight. Every time she visited, she still couldn't get over the cheerfulness of her fairy subjects, or at the idea that everyone was more than excited to see her each time. She still loved seeing that there were actual species like her that existed in one world. Her whole life she'd dreamed of living among them, but this was so much better.

Verge almost forgot about her worries.

"Over there is the animal fairies' area," King Lauqui said, pointing.

They began to fly upright, as the royals fluttered gently as they landed on the ground. Every fairy that had seen them had gathered around their landing spot, and were whispering excitedly at their arrival.

A young, redheaded fairy with poofy hair flew over. She was wearing an orange cocktail dress made out of leaves and a bright smile on her face. She bowed before Verge and her father. "My king! My princess! It is an honor to see you at our area here today!"

"I must apologize for the intrusion," King Lauqui started. "Verge, dear, this is Arianna, the Head Animal Fairy."

Verge curtsied politely. "It's nice to meet you."

"My princess Divergent, the pleasure is all mine!" The redhead also bowed towards her as well. "But to what do I owe the pleasure?"

King Lauqui cleared his throat. "My daughter is to begin her princess training in all talents around Fairy World. She would like to start her assistance here."

Verge couldn't help but laugh lightly. "It's actually funny because princess in most worlds would just sit at a throne and look pretty." It seemed that no one looked amused at her joke. "But it's good! I love helping out! I'm so excited to get started!"

"That enthusiasm is expected from the princess of fairies!" Arianna giggled. "It'd be amazing to get your help, princess. Follow me, my animal fairies are just beginning to teach some of our squirrels how to hibernate!"

And Verge did. She followed the Head Animal Fairy to a few trees in the woods, and saw more fairies in orange clothing tending to squirrels, rabbits, and other furry animals. The moment she saw them, she couldn't help squealing out loud and fast-flying right over to a bunny.

"These animals are _so cute!"_

A grumpy little bunny made weird grunting noises as Verge hugged its little neck. But just as the fairy began to rub its tummy, it actually started to purr and nuzzle against her. She laughed like a child and the bunny snuggled closer.

Arianna stared in shock. She knew animal fairies loved animals, but she had never seen such affection this much, especially in their princess. King Lauqui laughed nervously. "She…loves animals!"

More bunnies began to jump up and gather around her, bundling her up in a fluffy hill of fur. Verge hugged each one of them, gushing about how cute they all were. Some of the fairies nearby started complaining about how they had just gotten them to nap.

Arianna cleared her throat as her animal fairies' voices rose. "My princess, this behavior is completely inappropriate in the workspace and is interfering with the other fairies' efforts!"

"Oh!" Verge's pale skin blushed in embarrassment. "Of course! Um…alright little guys!" She hopped on one of the bunnies and pointed towards to trees. "Whoever goes to their tree to nap first gets more cuddles! Onwards!"

The bunnies suddenly started another furry rampage and hopped into the woods. Some animal fairies yelped and moved out of the way as they watched their princess lead their animals into a stampede, while at the same time somehow manage to do their jobs for them. Before they knew it, all rabbits were tucked away and bundled up in orange and red leaves for autumn.

"What marvelous taming!" Arianna couldn't help but gasp. She flew deeper into the forest, where Verge was, and King Lauqui looked impressed himself.

Verge, who got off her bunny, flew over to them sheepishly. "Back in the Dinosaur Cowboy World, I was pretty good at riding my hawkosaur."

"I don't precisely understand that sentence, but that was incredible!" The Head Animal Fairy put an arm around Verge with a smirk. "As expected from the princess of many talents!"

Verge beamed. Clearly, her father and Arianna looked proud, and some other animal fairies applauded her a bit. But then she began to notice the other fairies that were whispering, looking annoyed. She overheard the words of "weird" and "gonna steal our jobs." At this, her golden wings began to droop.

* * *

"Next, we'll visit the water fairies," King Lauqui said, flying beside Verge. "They're by the Grand River."

The Grand River was long and wide, with some trees surrounding it. The same scene happened when the royal fairies landed, but this time a male fairy dressed in a blue suit made of leaves approached them. "What a lovely surprise! Good morrow King Lauqui, Princess Divergent!"

"Please," Verge curtsied. "Call me Verge!"

"Is she here to finally assist us, my King?"

"Why, yes, Clarence," the King replied. "Were you about to place your dewdrops on spider webs?"

"It is one of the things we are working on! Right this way!"

The fairies approached an area of the river where lots of spider webs seemed to hang on the branches of trees. "Why are there water fairies when fairies' wings can't get wet?" Verge questioned.

"You see princess, water is an essential element of nature, and we water fairies have the important duty of mastering its art! We control water, bend it to our will, and help other fairies with it!"

"I see…"

Some water fairies were already by the river, taking droplets and placing them on the webs. Verge smiled to herself. "Looks like fun!"

Suddenly, Clarence went all up in her face, flying uncomfortably close with large, widened eyes. "Water fairy work is serious business."

The fairy princess blinked hard and moved away. "Um, okay…"

King Lauqui just smiled. "Go on, sweetie."

Verge flew over, just inches above the river water, approaching a bunch of fairies. One fairy with long dark hair grinned as she saw her. "Good day, princess!"

"Hello! I'm Verge!"

"Of course I know your name, princess! I'm Aqualine."

"Nice to meet you! Need some help?"

"Yes! It would be an honor!"

"But uh…I don't often do water fairy things, uh…how does this work?"

Aqualine giggled. "It's simple, Princess Verge." She demonstrated her actions carefully as she spoke. "You scoop your hands into the river and pick up a giant bubble of water. Then you hurriedly but carefully fly on over to a web and…voila!"

"Neat!" Verge flew over, admiring the web. "I wanna try!"

"Go ahead, princess!"

"Hmm…but wouldn't it be better to just…_control _the water to go to the webs?"

"Um…that's not how it works—"

Verge still tried though, and willed small droplets of water to rise from the air without her having to touch it. They followed her movements, and the fairy quickly dropped them down onto the spider webs and they formed dew drops. The fairies below looked up, a bit shocked at her technique. Verge continued to do the same thing with the other webs.

"Princess Verge," Aqualine still looked doubtful at her actions. "Dewdrops are very delicate—"

All of a sudden, all the water droplets began to slip from the white spider threads. The water fairies below yelped and flew away when the dewdrops began to crash down on them. Some actually got hit by the water, and weren't able to fly for a while.

Verge gasped and flew to them, helping a fairy up. "Oh my wings, I'm so sorry everyone! I-I thought it would work—"

Aqualine placed her hand on the fairy princess' shoulder. "It's alright Princess, everyone makes mistakes!" She smiled politely. "But I think we can handle things from here. Perhaps you would like to p will the water to help our garden fairies plant their bulbs?"

Verge only sighed sadly. "I suppose…"

She looked over her shoulder. Clarence was tapping his foot impatiently and her father gave a smile that said "Try again next time."

But the brunette fairy only sighed again. "I think I need to lie down."

"Verge—" King Lauqui tried to call out to his daughter, but the fairy had already flown off.

* * *

Verge found herself in the Winter Woods, where she hoped her father couldn't reach her. After hearing those mean comments from the animal fairies and hurting the water fairies like she did, she was starting to feel confused on what exactly was being suspected of her. She sat atop a snowy mountain with her knees tucked under her chin and the whole Fairy World for her to see.

This was supposed to be the world she would be ruling one day…she couldn't possibly do it all on her own.

At this moment, Verge felt like a threat to her own subjects. "I should've just stayed with Zero," she muttered. "I fail as a human _and _a fairy…"

"Princess Verge?"

Verge nearly fell off the mountain when she turned around. A winter fairy with snow-white hair and had pale shorts and shirt on approached her. He was quite surprised to see Verge just sitting there by herself, and he flew closer. "H-hello," Verge stuttered out. "Sorry, I just came to think, I can leave if you want—"

"It's fine, princess!" the fairy reassured. "It's a free Fairy World! Oh, where are my manners, I'm Frostbite!"

"What a cute name!" She suddenly blushed at what she just said.

Frostbite chuckled. "Thank you, your Highness. May I ask, what are you doing here on Frost Mountain?"

"Well…I'm kind of going through princess training right now? I'm supposed to learn all the ways of different fairy jobs and stuff."

"Well, I don't think I've heard any news of you covering winter fairy talents yet! I'd be happy to show you around—"

"It's alright, Frostbite…this is why I'm here." Verge sighed and gazed back at her view of the world. "I just don't feel very princess-y. I think fairies are worried I'll take over for all of fairy-kind or that I'll hurt them in some way. I think I'm…weird."

"Are you kidding?!" The white-haired fairy flew before her. "You're the most special, most talented fairy of all time! There's no way you could hurt anyone, and even if you did, no one could blame you if it was an accident! Besides, isn't that why you're here? To prevent incidents as you helo fairies along?"

The brunette hesitated. "I…guess…"

"Also, there's no way you can do _every single fairy _job all at once! In time for each season? No way. It takes a kingdom to prepare each of the seasons. You need your rest too!"

Verge laughed a bit. "You're right…"

Frostbite took her hands and gripped them. "You're not a mess-up or anything. Please let me prove it, princess, and join me at Frost Forest. We're practicing how to frost the leaves!"

The royal fairy was still very reluctant, but Frostbite was very persuasive. "Sure!"

They flew to the lower areas of the mountain, where a secret cave served as the entrance to the forest. Inside, there were lots of frozen leaves that sprouted out from the ground, and winter fairies that were tending to them. There were lots of plants for the fairies to practice on, and they did so by touching the leaves lightly, covering them in a thicker layer of frost.

"Wow!" Verge's eyes twinkled at the sight. "It's beautiful!"

Frostbite lead her to a plant. "Try it out, princess."

She was scared to mess up again. What if her ice powers were too strong? What if she broke a few plants? But when she looked at Frostbite – his encouraging smile and dark grey eyes that watched her - her worries seemed to melt away.

She touched the plant lightly, and a thick frost coat enveloped the entire plant. She expected more to happen, but smiled to realize how beautiful what she'd just created was.

Frostbite flew in a circle around Verge, laughing. "You did it! Come on, princess, race ya to the end of the forest!" He started hopping over frost plants, making sure his foot touched them and had frosted them before he jumped onto another.

With a hearty laugh, she raced after him.

They jumped across the forest, frosting each plant they stepped on, and Verge actually found this a lot of fun. She found it a bit difficult, since she had been so used to flying with her wings, but for Frostbite, it seemed like he was having no trouble. This shot a reminder through Verge at how fairies acted like humans too. She picked up her pace, but still couldn't seem to go after the winter fairy.

When they finally reached the other end of the cave, Frostbite appeared to have won, and he did a victory leap just before Verge tackled him to the ground. The two fell deep into the snow, and laughed even more at themselves.

Verge flew upwards, dusting herself off. "That was fun!"

"See, princess?" Frostbite grinned. "You can do your job. And you can do it well!"

The fairy princess smiled sheepishly. "Thanks, but…call me Verge!"

Frostbite bowed mockingly. "Whatever you say, Princess Verge!"

The brunette fairy curtsied and stuck her tongue out at him. The two fairies laughed.

"I guess I'd better continue my royal duties, huh?"

"Yep. I supposed I'll see you around?"

"You know it!"

With a final wave, Verge flew off the ground and went on her way.

* * *

Just by the border of Spring Hills and Summer Valley, the Tinker fairies were hard at work and were weaving baskets. Verge had never weaved before, and kind blonde fairy offered to teach her. They started chatting for a bit until a runaway wagon started speeding towards them.

While the other fairies scattered out of its way, Verge flew towards it and used wind to make it skid to a halt. The fairies that had been chasing the wagon thanked her kindly, and they offered to fix the wagon together.

Verge nodded, joyful.

* * *

With the garden fairies, Verge seemed very giddy at the sight of little bulbs with tiny feet and could dig their own way into the ground. A nice garden fairy with ribbons in her hair taught her how to lead her own sproutling bulbs with caution.

To Verge, it was just like taming an animal, so she couldn't help cuddling her bulb just before it buried itself into the ground.

* * *

The fast-flying fairies didn't look bothered at all when Verge suddenly joined in to help them gather all the autumn leaves into a pile. The group she was in caused all the loose leaves from the trees to fall off and landed perfectly onto the forest floor.

Once they were done, a fairy in a purple dress patted the princess' back, causing Verge to grin.

* * *

Once she'd realized it was almost time for her part-time fairy guide job, she flew straight back to the palace and was surprised to see both her parents there waiting. King Lauqui and Queen Larion tackled her into a hug the moment she stepped foor on the palace floor.

"Oh, my dear Verge," the Queen gushed. "I'm so proud of you! I heard many good words about you from the fairies. You're such a delight!"

"I knew you had it in you!" King Lauqui said proudly. "You are my daughter, after all."

This earned a nudge from the Queen. _"Ahem."_

"_Our _daughter, yes, that's what I meant!"

Verge giggled. "Thanks Mom, Dad. It was great to be here! Can't wait to come back!"

Queen Larion smiled sweetly. "You do know you can stay here forever if you wanted to."

Verge rolled her eyes. "Mooom, we talked about this. I belong in the human world too, with Zero, Boone, and Sashi! I'm a part-time fairy guide!"

"But you can't be a full-time princess." King Lauqui's voice suddenly turned very serious. "One of these days, I must insist that you decide, Divergent. Whether you want to be a fairy princess or a regular human."

Now, Verge was frowning. "What do you mean?"

"There will come a time when you will rule these lands on your own, dear. And you can't have a human as a husband. You can't just go back on forth from our worlds to the humans' whenever you want either! Unless…"

"Unless…?"

The King and Queen exchanged a worried look before Verge's mother continued. "Unless you decide you want to be a human for the rest of your life. A fairy can actually become a human themselves by cutting off their wings."

Verge's blue eyes widened, her hand instinctively coming up behind her to touch her wings. "Give up their wings…? Why?"

"Well, some fairies are crazy enough to do that," King Lauqui laughed apathetic ally. "This is another reason why the hawks wanted to get you before…they knew cutting off your wings would kill us greatly."

Queen Larion stepped forward to hold both of Verge's dainty hands and gaze into her eyes. "Of course, we could never stop you from finding your happiness. Whatever decision you make, we can learn to be alright with that. But we need to let you know of the consequences each decision brings."

"So…what you're saying is…I have to either stay a fairy and stay in this world for a long time, giving up living with Zero and being a part-time fairy guide forever…or give up being a fairy forever, and be forced to live as a human and never see you guys again?"

"We could always make things work!" King Lauqui put in. "You could always visit this Zero friend of yours, or if you're a human we can visit you! Of course, we're only allowed to during the seasonal changes…"

This news was very big to Verge, and in all honesty, it was going to be a tough decision for her to make.

Still, she told her parents with confidence, "There is no way I'm going to give up my wings. And there's no way I'll lose you guys again."

Queen Larion's blue eyes teared up a bit as she hugged her daughter. "I love you, my princess."

"I love you too Mom…"

King Lauqui joined in the hug and together, the three stayed that way for quite some time.

Verge was the first to pull away. "Alright, I gotta go! It's not like I'm leaving for good anyway! I'll…think about what you told me, though."

"See you soon, sweetie." The King and Queen waved their hands and Verge held her MUT up.

The brunette gave a small smile. "Bye…"

With a zap, she was gone.

* * *

Verge ended up inside the Odyssey, and she flew through the theatre doors and found Penn, Boone, and Sashi already on the platform. "You are late," Phyllis said stoically.

The fairy only smiled apologetically as she went to fly over her friends. "Sorry, Phyllis! Had a hold-up."

"Man, you're not always so late, Verge," Boone commented, reaching up to poke her in the side. Verge pouted at that.

"Yeah, what gives?" Penn smirked a bit. "Did those animals give you a hard time?"

"That would be weird," Sashi commented, pounding her fist against her palm. "Considering what you can do."

Verge only chuckled. "Let's just say I had a lot of my plate."

With that, the four got zapped to work.

* * *

**How was that for the first special episode? I based a lot of the parts of Fairy World on my knowledge of Tinker Bell movies! I tried my best not to copy everything but still make Fairy World seem as real as any ordinary Penn Zero World! I hope I achieved my goal.**

**But now you know what it would be like for Verge as a typical fairy princess! I did my best to try and seem like everything fit into the original time of a PZ episode (this was 10 pages long on MS word-). I really hope you guys liked it!**

**I'll start the next Penn episode tomorrow maybe!**


	9. Back to the Past of Future Balls

**Episode 7: Back to the Past of Future Balls**

* * *

**So I know I said I would post this TWO DAYS AGO but I had a date yesterday HAHAH sorry for my laziness here's the chapter!**

* * *

"What another beautiful day!" Verge chirped, stretching her arms and wings. She and her four friends were on their way to the Odyssey just after school ended, and the fairy seemed to be in a peppy mood. "Just another wonderful day to start work!"

"Someone's happy," Boone joked, poking the fairy on her tiny head. "Was a wittle faiwy glad about not having to go to school?"

"If she was happy about _that, _she would be happy everyday," Sashi commented.

Verge rolled her eyes playfully as she grew bigger and put her red vest on, hiding her wings before throwing her hands up in the air. "Can't a girl be happy to be going to work on such a sunny day?"

Suddenly, the sky darkened, thunder boomed in the sky, and rain began pouring down on the four heroes. The fairy dropped her hands to her sides and Penn crossed his arms, raising an eyebrow. "You were saying?"

"Let's just get to Phyllis."

The four ran to the abandoned movie theatre as fast as they could, and panted when they'd arrived soaking wet. Verge removed her vest and fluttered them as fast as she could. This quickly dried the heroes off.

A small television was waiting for them by the zap platform. Phyllis was by the MUT's controls before she looked down from above. "Good. Not late. Watch this."

The mechanic held up a remote, and the four heroes gathered around the television to see what was playing. It seemed to be an old recording of their progress during the Balls world. It was during the time it was raining there as well, and Penn was scolding the balls for just scattering away. Penn winced when he saw his tennis ball self get hit by lightning. Boone was chewing on a bucket of popcorn, which Verge was confused by. "Where did you get that?"

The part-time Wiseman spoke with his mouth full, but it seemed like he was saying "I don't tell you everything."

They also got a clip of when the hunters' golf cart got caught in a mud hole, and it caused a big problem for Larry in getting it back out.

"Phyllis, why are you having us watch this?" Penn asked.

The mechanic shut the TV off and turned the MUT switch on. "Because everything on TV is _veeery _important. Good luck!"

Before they knew it, the four got zapped.

* * *

"Nice!" Boone cheered. "Back! In the Ball World!"

"I'm a snitch again!" Verge also said happily, flying around the heroes in circles. They yelped out when the four spun around.

"Verge!" Sashi complained.

"Aww, sorry Sash! Didn't mean to rile up your spots there!" The soccer ball rolled her eyes.

Boone rolled forward a bit. "Yeah, chillax Sash! Should be an easy, relaxing, _soul-crushing wasteland!"_

Penn, Verge, and Sashi were shocked when they looked forward and saw what had now become of the world. "This isn't how we'd left things!" Penn cried. The world was so much darker, there were buildings shaped like rackets, and the sports equipment hunters were evilly laughing as they tortured balls, making them act as slaves and do the equipments' bidding.

"Oh my wings," Verge choked, as she watched the balls she met from the last time they'd come here pull a golf cart. They looked to be in so much pain.

"Hey, you balls!" The four looked to the side and more sports equipment approach them. One wooden hockey stick looked at them intimidatingly. "Why are you not being oppressed?"

Sashi looked intimidating as well, but the stick pushed the balls into a net and tied them up. Verge, who had dodged just in time, couldn't be quick enough for the equipment to trap her in a tiny wooden box. "Not again!" she yelled, her voice muffled from inside.

The equipment began to take them up to a building with giant bowling ball pins as the entrance. Once the sticks arrived at the right floor, Penn, Boone, and Sashi were thrown before a desk. The wooden box was also thrown, and in an instant, Verge flew out. _"Please never again!" _she shouted. "What the—"

The four looked up at the desk and heard Larry sighing happily at the marble massage he was getting. When the heroes arrived, the marbles moved off to reveal the ping pong paddle smile. "Thanks for the back roll, guys! Same time Thursday?"

"What's going on Larry?" Penn questioned, as Verge helped her friends out of their net.

"Phil zapped us here early so we could use a time machine to fix our last mission. So the sports equipment won!"

They heard a flush, and Rippen emerged from a door. "While you were going potty," Larry continued. "I got the heroes up to speed."

"My going potty is my business. And I don't want them up to speed!" The heroes still smiled and Penn winked at Boone. "And I want them to witness—"

The football leapt forward, and he landed in Rippen's mouth, making him stop talking. "Hurry up!" Boone cried. "This is gross!"

Penn hopped onto the desk. "You expect us to believe that a tennis racket and a ping pong paddle built a time machine?"

"Nooo!" Larry admitted. "A super amazing bouncy ball did it!"

He hopped off the desk and pulled at a rope. Red curtains pulled away to reveal a giant billiards table. It looked high-tech, and on the table was the super amazing bouncy ball, wearing green glasses and was gagged.

"You poor thing!" Verge cried, instantly flying over and pulling at the white cloth that gagged him. Penn bounced over right after.

The bouncy ball let out a breath. "Thank balls you found me! After taking those villains back in time, _that tennis racket _had the _nerve _to tell me that for a super amazing bouncy ball, I didn't seem very super _or _amazing! I built a _time machine!_ I'd say that's super _and _amazing!" As the bouncy ball seemed to grow red, Penn and Verge looked unimpressed.

"Some ball's a little insecure," Penn pointed out.

"Looks like someone can't take a joke," Verge whispered. The tennis ball held back a laugh.

"Guys!" Sashi cried, checking her Specs. "Our mission is to go back in time to set things right before Rippen eliminates the last link to the old timeline, us!"

That's when Rippen spat Boone out. "Which is what I'm going to do now! Goons!"

The other sports equipment appeared from the elevator, grinning evilly as they held darts in their mouths.

Boone instantly leapt to action, and so did Verge.

At first, the Golden Snitch was quick enough to let the darts hit off her metal body and deflect the throws, but then she didn't notice Boone had been behind her, and he had gotten hit when she tried to dodge. She gasped when a dart hit his side.

"No, Boone!" Penn cried.

The football only laughed as he was slowly deflating. "At least this was how I always wanted to go ouuttt…"

"Boone!" Verge cried, flying over, looking extremely sad.

"That deflated football is a true patriot," the bouncy ball commented.

Now, Sashi jumped up and made Rippen fall face-first onto the floor. The equipment tried hitting her as well, but she managed to dodge them. She bounced on one stick, breaking it. "Penn, Verge! Get the super amazing bouncy ball to the time machine!"

"Move, move, move!" Penn hopped onto the billiards table and looked back. "Come on, Verge!"

But the Snitch was too shocked to move. "Sashi, don't!" She tried to fly over to protect the soccer ball, but it had been hit with too many darts.

"Sashi!" Penn and Verge shouted.

"Don't worry! You save me and Boone if you guys go back in time and set things right…"

"_We gotta go now!" _The bouncy ball hit Penn, making him fall into the table's corner pocket, and Verge snapped back to her senses and quickly flew over. The time table zapped away in a flash.

* * *

"Ahh!" Penn and Verge found themselves yelping.

"Obviously we're falling because there's no sky scraper in the past!"

Verge flew away from them and tried to dust the table. Thankfully, just moments before it hit the ground, the time table was able to land to the grass safe and sound.

"Nice one Verge," Penn sighed, bouncing off. "Let's fix the future! Verge, you're not hurt, are you?"

"No, the fairy admitted. "But, Boone and Sash—"

"You heard what Sashi said. Let's do our job and fix things, and they'll be A-okay!"

The tennis ball tried to smile reassuringly. At this, his friend softened. "You're right, Zero." They tried to do a tiny fist bump, realized they couldn't, and just bumped themselves together.

The bouncy ball suddenly gasped. "Look!" They looked ahead and were shocked to realized there were balls in the sea before them, and they didn't look like any balls they knew. "We must've gone back millions of years! Whoa! It's the first ball rolling out of the water!"

"I'm very confused right now," Verge deadpanned.

Penn glared at the bouncy ball. "So, in other words, you messed up."

The bouncy ball glared right back and started turning red. "Oh, am I not super and amazing enough for you? You can't even _fathom _how hard it was to build a time machine! Imagine turning a screw with your mouth! Now imagine doing it three more times!"

At this, the tennis ball looked at the time table. "There are only four screws holding that thing together?"

"Sounds dangerous, but here we are," Verge sighed. "Look, super amazing bouncy ball, this truly is a work of art, but we need you to put you insecurities aside for a moment and—"

She cut herself off when they felt the ground shake. Penn glanced down and frowned. "Uh-oh. Ripples in a puddle are never good."

From the trees that seemed to be giant shuttlecocks, a green dinosaur with a plastic see-through neck roared out, causing the balls to gasp. The balls began to roll away. _"Ha-ho! Go go go go go go go!"_

The dinosaur emerged, rolling forward and roaring to show its body was just like a flask, and there was nothing inside. It reached into the water and swallowed some of the balls, and they made noises of distress. The bouncy ball, Penn, and Verge, screamed out.

Verge tried to push Penn away. "I'd like to say it's cute but I think we should go!"

The dinosaur saw them and roared once more. "Oh no!" Penn rolled away instantly.

"Quick, to the time table!" the bouncy ball said.

"Move move move!"

Once again, they were zapped away.

* * *

"Greetings, ladies and gentleballs!"

Penn looked behind a rock and grinned at Verge and the bouncy ball. "He-hey, that's me!"

"Is that what I look like from behind?" Verge sniffed.

"We have to wear these fake mustaches," the bouncy ball said, pushing two forward. "So the past versions of ourselves don't recognize us!"

"Alright, can't argue with that," Penn said, putting his on.

Verge stared at the white one she was given. "Yeah, sure, this will totally work…" She put hers on reluctantly. "Put a mustache on a girl, why not."

"Wait! Do I have a butt?"

"Of course you have a butt!" The bouncy ball turned around. "All balls have butts!"

This made the Snitch shiver. "O-kay…not weird at all."

"Does my butt look big?" Penn joked, glancing at himself again.

Verge smirked. "Girl, I think it looks _fi-ine!"_ This made the tennis ball laugh.

Suddenly, they noticed a flash from afar. "Okay that flash must've been Rippen, Larry, and the past version of you arriving. Let's go set things right."

"There's actually _two _past versions of me here!" the bouncy ball said, but Penn and Verge were already rolling their eyes and rolling away. "The one the tennis racket brought back, and the one listening to the past versions of you and your friends' _stupid speech!"_

"Hey!" Verge defended. "It was a very good speech! Hawk you!"

"_Excuse me?!"_ The bouncy ball was turning red once again as he glared at her.

"Hey, hey!" Penn scolded. "No fighting, remember?"

"Can't promise that now," Verge huffed, flying forward.

The three hid to see Rippen and Larry in their own ridiculous disguises, with their time table and a flipchart behind the villains. "You know for a super amazing bouncy ball, you're not very super _or _amazing!" Rippen and Larry began to laugh, but both the past and the present bouncy ball were turning red with anger yet again.

"Would you calm down?" Penn whispered. "You're gonna pop!"

"Put your insecurities aside!" Verge hissed. "We need something to trap them…"

"See any rope of any kind around?"

The Snitch flew up, her eyes glinted, and she flew off. "Your Snitch friend is a snitch!" The bouncy ball snapped.

"Hey, don't call her that! Verge may be a Snitch but she's not a snitch!" This confused Penn as well and he frowned as he thought for a second.

Verge _did _fly right back, with a blue jumping rope in her mouth. "No idea what this is doing here in ball world, but it'll work!"

"Nice one!"

"Can I get a mustache instead?" Larry was asking Rippen.

"No!"

"He's right! You should've gone with mustaches!"

"Penn Zero!"

The three balls jumped right in, and Verge did the honor of quickly circling them to tie the villains and the past bouncy ball up nice and neat. "You forgot me!" the Snitch huffed.

"But how?!" Rippen sneered.

"Time travel is a little complicated and I'm a little confused myself," Penn admitted. "All I know is, that golf cart is getting stuck in the mud!" As if on cue, Larry was riding forth in his golf cart, and he didn't seem to notice them. It began to get darker and rain started to pour. Penn turned to the bouncy ball. "Well, you were a hard ball to deal with but it looks like this mission is in the ball-bag!"

Rippen only smirked. "You may be winning but you're still not _that _super _or_ amazing!"

"_Oh yeah?!"_

The bouncy ball leapt forward, hitting Rippen right in the face, and he bounced off and at the golf cart, making it swerve and move away from the mud. It didn't get stuck, and this caused Penn and Verge to gasp.

"Dude!" Verge yelled.

"No!" Penn watched in horror as he got hit with the lightning bolt and Rippen and his goons rode off on their golf cart. Penn stared sadly, his fake mustache drooping. Verge landed next to him, her blue eyes also full of gloom. "We're sorry, Sashi and Boone…"

"Look, Zero, we messed up, but we didn't let them down."

Penn glanced at his friend, eyes widened as if she had just read his mind.

"She's right," the bouncy ball suddenly said, rolling up to him. "Don't be so dramatic!"

Verge rolled over and knocked her head against him. "Says the one that actually ruined our shot to fix things!"

"One, that hurt! And two, we'll just go back five minutes and stop the other me!"

Penn glared as Verge used her mouth to hold onto him and fly up. "Okay, fine! But I'm getting _really _confused now!"

* * *

When they arrived at a new time period, Penn groaned in frustration. "You overshot _again!"_

"Fascinating," the bouncy ball mused, ignoring his complaining. "This is before the ball-sports equipment trouble _started!" _Penn rolled his eyes again when he stated speaking. "Legend has it that the feud began when a marble tripped a prominent pool cube—"

"_Stop!" _Penn interrupted. "Just stop it, please! We hold the well-being of all balls in our—okay, not hands! Bad analogy, but you know what I mean!"

"Maybe you didn't hear, but that tennis racket said—"

"That you're not that super or amazing! Yeah! I'm sure it's very frustrating but you can't let that get to you! It's causing some really severe historical problems!"

"He's right!" Verge put in. "Zero lets things get to him all the time that he caused tantrums almost everyday!"

"Yeah—wait what?"

"The point is, you shouldn't let your emotions get the best of you!" The bouncy ball frowned at her. "Believe me, Zero and I, of all balls, know what that's like."

A marble in a top hat and monocle suddenly passed them. "Pardon me here! Just marbling through!"

"Marble?" Penn questioned.

Verge looked ahead and saw a pool cube in a fancy dress casually hopping. "Prominent pool cube?"

The three balls gasped and looked at each other. Penn hopped and Verge flew before the bouncy ball could say anything.

Verge was faster than Penn, so she managed to help the pool cube back on her feet before she could fall onto the rock. However, because of this, Verge couldn't support all the weight and her ball form hit the rock instead. There was a loud noise, and a crack formed on Verge's head. She fell to the ground with her wings no longer fluttering and her eyes closed.

"_Verge!" _Penn yelled, rolling over.

"Kid!" The super bouncy ball came over, but Penn was trying to shake his friend awake.

"Come on, come on! Snitches don't die this easily, do they?" Tears started to well up a bit. "Please be alive…"

"Some ball, help us! Hurry!"

A ball rolled over, clearing his throat. "Ahem! I'm the doctor around here! Why don't you leave this to balls who are actually super _and _amazing?" The crowd that had formed around Verge began to laugh snootily. "Someone fetch my bag of ball-shaped leeches!"

The super bouncy ball, once again, began to turn red with anger. He looked like he was going to bounce on the doctor. But then he looked at Penn, who was still desperately trying to wake up Verge. "Come on, Vergie, don't leave me like this…"

The bouncy ball calmed down, finally, and let out a deep sigh. "Look, kid, leave it to the experts…and then we'll get outta here."

Penn's sad face tried to smile, but inside he was still very worried.

* * *

The next time Verge opened her eyes, she was groaning and was tackled into a hug.

"_Verge!" _The part-time hero couldn't hug, but he could nuzzle his head against her tiny Snitch form, and Verge blinked.

"Zero? What…" She then looked beside him. "Boone! Sashi! You're alive!"

Sashi smiled. "Yeah! You and Penn saved us!"

"Wait, what?"

Verge flew over, and grinned widely when she saw the buildings and oppression was completely wiped away. Instead, sports equipment and balls were living in harmony! The sky was blue, the grass was green, and everyone genuinely looked happy.

"They're all getting along?" she asked, still happy. Penn grinned and knocked her on her head with his ball form. _"Ow!"_

"Because you changed history, Vergie."

The bouncy ball rolled over with a smile. "Sometimes, unintended consequences bounce your way."

"Why did you just jump in like that, it should've been me!"

The Snitch pouted and flew in a circle around him. "If I let you be the one to jump in an save that pool cube instead of me, you would've gotten the same fate I did!"

"Fair point…still though," He looked serious as his blue eyes stared into hers. _"Never, ever, do that to me again." _He continued nuzzling her, which Verge laughed at.

"Alright, Zero, alright…!" Verge paused a bit, thinking to herself. She'd had near death experiences before, but now she was wondering: what would be worse for Penn? If she died, or if she could never see her again? "How did I get here, though? How am I still…"

"Thanks to both of your annoying nagging," the bouncy ball spoke up again. "I overcame my insecurity and instead of attacking a very condescending medicine ball, I brought you two back to the present where we were able to fix you with modern medical technology: duct tape!"

Verge glanced at her head, and smiled a bit at the two pieces of duct tape placed on where the crack had formed on her forehead. "Thanks for saving me!" she laughed a bit, flying around the ball.

Penn smiled as well. "You really are super."

"Aaaand?"

"Really? You also have to be amazing?"

The ball just smiled. "Hmm?"

Penn sighed.

"Would it be so horrible to say?! I saved your friend's life! You're welcome!"

"And I am very grateful—" Verge started, but Penn rolled her out of the way.

"Oh yeah? Who screwed up in the first place?"

"_You a_re _so negative! _I feel sorry for you!"

"Oh, well, okay, fine! You're _sooo super and amaaazing! Oooh!"_

"Oh, boy," Verge said, glancing at Sashi and Boone. If balls could shrug, it looked like they did. Drowning out the rest of their arguing, Verge just sighed and waited for them to get zapped home.

* * *

"Do I have any cut here?" Verge asked, pushing back her hair to check her face in the mirror.

"Luckily, there doesn't seem to be any scar," Penn said. "C'mere."

The two sat on the bed, facing each other, and Penn brushed back the fairy's brown strands of hair. Verge smiled a bit. She liked when Penn was protective of her, but she never chose to show it.

"You seem all good," the redhead confirmed, smiling lightly. "But, just in case…"

He reached over and pressed a kiss to her forehead, in the same place she'd gotten hurt. Verge's smile went wider. She would also never admit she'd be ten times happier whenever Penn would do that to her.

"Thanks, Zero!"

* * *

**Hope you liked this one guys, and once again sorry it was late!  
**

**Please remember to leave a favourite and a review! It would mean a lottt hehe**


	10. The Tale of Two Wizards

**Episode 8: The Tale of Two Wizards**

* * *

**Sorry I didn't update for a while, I went on a trip for three days :D**

* * *

It was yet another day at Middleburg High, but because Verge hadn't visited the place in so long, she decided to stay with her friends for the time being. Especially since she found out earlier than morning about a certain special event that would be specifically special to one of her friends…

"Are we all set for the National Flip-Flop Day party tomorrow?" Penn whispered during the final class that day.

Verge popped her head out from his hair, her tiny head resting on his ear. "Yep! Just have a few adjustments to the decorations."

"Awesome!" Penn looked ecstatic. "Boone is going to flip his flop!"

The fairy in his hair laughed. "What a play on words. Since there's no other time for us to get everything ready, we have to leave as soon as we're dismissed!"

"No prob, Bob!"

"I'm Verge."

"…I-I know…"

"You know that, Zero."

Penn only rolled his eyes playfully.

Once the bell rang, he grabbed his bag and high-tailed it out of his classroom and out the school doors. Sashi was already there waiting for him. "Did Boone see you?"

"Nope," Verge called out from Penn's hair. Her hand that was giving a thumbs up poked out. "I made sure of it."

The two rushed over to Penn's place immediately. The living room was already decorated with flip-flop-like décor. There were snacks in the fridge and a few balloons on the floor. To add the finishing touches, Sashi brought out a large banner from her bag, which Verge and Penn hung up. It revealed the words "Happy National Flip-Flop Day!"

Penn brought out another bag of balloons and began blowing one up. "It's funny how we're doing all this for one holiday that isn't even official."

"Well," Sashi shrugged, also blowing one up. "Because it's Boone, I guess."

Verge chuckled, adjusting the flip-flop shaped flags. "You're right there, Sash. Because it's Boone. I'm sure if it were any of us…we'd give each other this much effort."

The part-time hero and sidekick smiled at each other. "Yeah."

They nearly lost track of time, but the three managed to pack up and run straight to the Odyssey once all the decorations were complete. They even dashed past Phyllis, who was fixing some parts of the MUT. The three panted and sighed in relief when they noticed Boone wasn't there yet. "Alright, he hasn't arrived," Penn breathed out, taking his place on the zap platform. Verge flew out of his hair and grew to fly before him. "That's good."

But then all of a sudden, the giant, metal Phyllis heads that they've seen before dropped out of nowhere. The red eyes began glowing and a siren was ringing out loudly. _"Where are they? Where are they? Where are they? Where are they?"_

The three were very shocked, and Verge covered her ears. "I think he's looking for us!" she yelled out.

Once the Phyllis heads disappeared, Boone emerged through the theatre doors. "Oh, hey Boone!" Penn waved a hand as the part-time Wiseman ran up to them. "Uh, forgot to tell ya that we had an errand to run, it's really boring, so…"

"Yeah," Sashi agreed. "We figured we'd spare you the chore."

Boone only squinted his eyes at the three. "You're being suspiciously vague…"

The three just kept smiling innocently. "Vague?" Verge chuckled nervously. "I only know the word Verge!"

"Buuut as long as you weren't secretly trying to get rid of me!" He nudged Penn for emphasis, and the redhead smiled at the girls. "'Cause that would bother me!" He paused. "Big time!"

"Boone, we would never—"

Phyllis zapped them before she could finish her sentence.

* * *

Verge was happy to notice they were back in the dimension where they had their first zap. She was back in her red and blue dress and her brown hair was still tied back with flower stems. She flew by Sashi, who was also in her fairy form in that world. "Alright guys, no time to waste with anything dumb!" she said. "We need to cross the hostile countryside to stop the evil sorcerer from breaking down the good king's castle gates and seizing his throne!"

"Alright, sounds simple!" Verge chirped.

"Does everything sound simple to you?" Penn joked.

"Guys, check it out!" Boone called. "A giant mushroom! I bet if we eat it, we'll-we'll get an extra life or grow super big!"

"Boone, wait—"

"Isn't that in Mario—" Verge started.

But Boone had already bitten down into the "mushroom" and it screamed out. The bright red mushroom turned out to be a toe that belonged to a bright red troll. It growled and glared down at Boone, who was walking backwards now.

"Uh-oh!"

"Boone, use your wizard powers!" Penn yelled.

"On it! Shrieky-doo, shrieky-dee, shrink this troll so it's smaller than _me-whoa!" _Clumsy Boone tripped over his green robes and his face smacked against the troll's foot. He fell backwards and his wizard staff hit his nose.

"Oh, wings," Verge slowly brought a hand to her face.

Boone's nose glowed and stretched out, until a smaller Boone popped out and fell. The two Boones began screaming until they realized their screaming was simultaneous and it sounded like a song. "Not helping!" Verge yelled.

The troll roared once again and the Boones screamed in horror again. Just as it was about to step on them, Verge flew over and used her protection magic. This let Penn and Sashi push the Boones into the bushes. Unfortunately, the troll then instead picked up Penn in one hand and picked Sashi and Verge up with the other. The three screamed as the troll was about to eat the redhead first.

Just then, descending from the skies, another wizard came flying in on a griffin and was waving his wand. "Hey troll! Everyone do the Camelot Hustle, let's take away some of that muscle!"

With a wave of his staff, the troll grew thinner, and he looked at himself in horror as he released the three. With a wave of the wizard's hand, a card appeared. "Here's a gym membership. It comes with a consultation nutritionist, so you can build back your muscle, but on a healthier diet."

"I don't like the troll I've become!" the troll admitted. "Thank you, O Wise and Powerful one!"

"Please, call me Ryan."

The troll backed away, smiling giddily. "Heh, Ryan…"

The wizard's griffin finally landed on the ground and he hopped off. "Are you guys insane? It is _seriously _dangerous to be travelling around these parts without a wizard!"

Penn frowned. "We—We do have a wizard! Well, sort of."

Verge nodded, pointing. "He's the one in the bushes."

"That's me!" Boone shook his butt and emerged from his hiding place. _"I'm _the wizard!" The tiny version of him was still with him, and the tiny Boone's beard seemed to be tangled with bigger Boone's.

"And I'm the tiny version of the wizard!" Tiny Boone piped. "What up?"

"Our beards got tangled! Give us one minute!"

Ryan only raised his eyebrows. "Mm-hm…"

Penn and Sashi turned back to Ryan. "Well, uh, I tell you what Ryan! You're welcome to journey with _us _tothecastle if you're not already part of a fellowship!"

"Actually, I just got out of a fellowship that went on _forever."_ He saw Verge shudder. _"Right_? I thought it was gonna be one adventure but they stretched it out into two, and then three! I mean, maybe two adventures I could've dealt with but three? _Three?! _Anyway, count me in as long as it doesn't go on _nine hours."_

"Oh, don't worry," Verge said, waving a hand. "Our missions only last until bedtime at most." This made Penn nudge her. "What?"

Ryan chuckled. "Well alright there. We'll get to the castle much faster if we take Nathaniel."

The heroes began to ride the griffin, and Verge couldn't resist hugging the griffin's head and ruffling its feathers. Nathaniel could let out a screech like an eagle, but the lion part of him was purring.

Once they were seated, Boone let out a large sneeze that made him fall off again. Tiny Boone also sneezed and fell. Together, they spoke and rubbed their noses. "I must be allergic to lion birds."

"Griffin," The golden-winged fairy corrected him and flew over, patting Tiny Boone's head.

"Is it absolutely necessary that they accompany us?" Ryan whispered to Penn.

"Uhhh…yeah…y-yes, final answer yes."

The wizard let out a sigh. "Well, in that case we're going to have to walk, the very long, very dangerous road to the castle."

"No problem!" Verge said, flying. "We planned on walking anyway."

"You're a fairy. I'm almost certain you were planning on flying the whole time."

"Hey—yes well you're not wrong there. What will we do with Nathaniel?"

Ryan let out a whistle, and the griffin seemed to nod. With a flap of its wings, it took off into the sky, letting out a final screech. "He'll be alright."

"Huh…neat."

The team managed to walk until they reached a flowing river. Boone instantly saw this as an opportunity to show his skills again.

"Calamazi, calamazoo, we could really use a sweet canoe!"

"Cool!" Tiny Boone said. "It's made of sugar!" Just as he was about to bit into it, the canoe melted away. "Hey!"

Ryan only raised an eyebrow. "I think I got—"

"I got this!" Verge flew in circles around Penn, Ryan, and the two Boones. She dusted them with her pixie dust and they magically floated over from their side to the other side of the river.

"Yeah!" Penn pumped his fist, and he and Verge did a tiny fist bump. "Nice one."

"Not all fairies in this realm do that," Ryan smiled, looking impressed now.

Verge fluttered her wings as she stood on his staff. "I'm not like all fairies."

The team began to continue their venture. Verge and Sashi had no problem, and Ryan seemed pretty much okay, Penn and Boone were the ones especially suffering from the long walk. With Penn wearing his heavy armor, and Tiny Boone on Boone, Ryan spoke up as he noticed their struggling. "Because uh, we couldn't take Nathaniel…remember? When you voted against that? I'm assuming your non-wizard legs must be very tired. So…what do you say we take a little staycation?"

Penn and Sashi let out joyous sounds as Ryan conjured up lounge chairs for Penn, Verge, and Sashi. "Oh yeah!" Penn said, pumped. "Mine even has a massager!"

"Be careful, Zero," Verge said jokingly. "Don't get too attached to it."

"Like how you got attached to me?" Ryan winked at the fairy, who was still sitting on the wizard's staff.

The four began to laugh when Verge simply huffed and flew to her provided seat.

"Now, please my friends, continue to sit back and relax." Ryan smirked as he conjured up a red ball underneath him. He balanced himself on it as he then conjured up a snake, a shark, and a crocodile, and suddenly began juggling them. The three gasped, grinning widely in amusement, as the wizard even began to spew fire from his mouth. Penn, Verge, and Sashi clapped for the entertainment they were provided.

"Nice one, Ryan!" Penn cheered.

"Boone!" Verge called out, laughing. "Are you seeing this?"

"Uh, yeah, Vergie! It's cool! Nice one…Ryan…"

The fairy looked over at the Boones, and saw Big Boone feeding Tiny Boone, who was seated at a baby chair. She frowned when she noticed the part-time Wiseman's face. She recognized that expression; Verge could always tell whether her friends were uncomfortable.

She tried to fly over, but once she did, she heard the sounds of goblins cheering from a distance. She flew higher and gasped. "Guys!" she shouted out. "Sorry to interrupt this, but follow me!"

Ryan made his props disappear, and the heroes began to run towards the direction Verge was flying. "Verge, what's—" Penn started, but that's when he noticed Rippen's familiar evil laugh. "Hey look, there they are! They're heading for the castle gate! We gotta—"

"Kick back and relax!"

"What—" Verge, along with the others, was shocked to find Boone had conjured up white ropes to come up and tangle the four in them. Chains came up as well and tied them down, making sure they wouldn't escape.

"Boone!" Penn shouted. "Why are you attacking us with hammocks?!"

"I'll make it up to you!" Boone insisted. "After I prove I'm more valuable than Ryan by winning the mission myself!"

"Wait, what?!" Verge exclaimed. But by then, Boone disappeared with a wave of his wand. "Ugh! I knew something was up. I think our Wiseman is insecure."

"Well…" Sashi mused. "We _did _leave school without him."

"It was for him!" Penn said defensively. "But, I suppose it was a bad move…way to go, Verge."

"Hey!"

"I'm not pointing fingers, don't worry!"

"Sure…"

"I'm sorry," Ryan spoke up, raising an eyebrow. "But, what is going on here?"

"Sorry, Ryan, we don't tell you everything! …oh, I hope Boone comes back…"

"Don't you have some fairy magic to get us out here?" Penn tried to shake free in his hammock when he heard screaming.

"_Help!"_

"Incoming!" Boone, who had been tossed back by Rippen, landed in front of the heroes and broke out of the ice he had accidentally trapped himself in. He now lay on the ground, defeated. "No, Boone! Uh, creepy little mini Boone! You have to do something!"

Tiny Boone smiled nervously. "I'd like to but, I'm gonna take the 5:15 harpy out of town!" He hopped on a weird bird with a human face on it, and the harpy flew off with Tiny Boone.

Verge scoffed. "Coward."

Real Boone sat up groggily. He frowned as he looked at his friends. "I'm sorry, guys. I _really _screwed up this time. I totally understand if you wanna replace me with Ryan."

"What?!" Penn gasped. "We would never replace you, buddy!"

"But he's so much better than me!" At that, Ryan smiled and shrugged at the heroes. "And-and it's obvious you guys were already thinking about it! That's why you guys didn't invite me to run that boring errand with you after school!"

At this, Penn, Verge and Sashi exchanged knowing looks. "Oh, Boone, you insecure little puppy," Verge sighed.

"Wow, you really are wrong a lot," Penn commented. "Look, we didn't bring you on the errand because we were planning a surprise party for you in honor of your favourite holiday!" He, Sashi, and Verge all said _"National Flip-Flop Day!"_

Boone gasped and beamed at his friends, causing Penn to smile as well. "That's the one, see?"

The wizard laughed and finally used his magic to let them go. Penn ran over to put a hand on his best friend's shoulder. Verge and Sashi flew beside him. "You're our best friend, Boone. _No one _could replace you."

"I mean, we could!" Sashi joked. "But we won't. Unless Phyllis says we can."

Boone stood, making a noise that sounded like he was both laughing and crying. "You guys are the best!"

They heard someone crying softly and the four turned to see Ryan with his sleeve over his eyes. "You know what you guys, please, continue having this beautiful, truly inspiring moment. I will stop the ram!"

"What," Verge frowned. "But the moment's over—"

"_Nathanieeeeel!"_

A screech sounded out, and the griffin swooped in and picked Ryan up. The four beamed as the griffin brought the wizard down behind the ram and goblin army. Using his wand, he casted magical threads that were pulling at the ram, making it move backwards.

"Is this really going to work?" Sashi wondered.

Verge crossed her arms. "Probably not…" The gang began to run towards where the wizard was.

Nathaniel suddenly came up and tried to pull Ryan back, but the magic came loose from his wand, and so did Ryan's clothes. The wizard gasped in horror as he found his cloak in Nathaniel's mouth. "It's not fun when you're naked and you don't wanna be!" He took the bush that covered his lower area and ran off.

By then, the ram was already past the castle walls. "Ugh, we're not gonna catch it!" Sashi cried.

That's when Boone looked down and picked up what looked like to be a small log. "They forgot a piece!" He placed it back down and positioned himself like a golfer would. "Incoming!"

With a swing of his wand, the piece came flying towards the ram and hit it, enveloping the weapon in a purple glow. That one hit made the whole ram come apart and exploded into a cloud of grey. The goblin army shrieked out as they ran away from the wolf that seemed to make the whole ram move. They also got a glimpse of Rippen running away from said wolf, his entire being looking frightened.

"Boone, looking wise!" Penn praised.

Sashi laughed. "Yeah, not too stupid!"

The four did their quadruple fist bump. "That's our wizard, alright!" Verge said, winking at the part-time Wiseman. This made Boone grin.

"Anyone know a good nacho place around here?" The four looked up and was surprised to see Tiny Boone flying on the harpy he had flown off with earlier.

The sight made Verge growl and call out, _"Nathanieeeel!"_

This made the griffin swoop in just as quickly and swallow the harpy whole, eating Tiny Boone with it. _"Happy National Flip-Flop Day, everyone!"_

* * *

The four got zapped home with happy smiles.

"Sorry for all the trouble, guys," Boone said, sighing. "I should've known better."

"Yeah, you should've!" Verge said, flying down to stand beside him and knocking his head. "But well, now that you know the surprise, you better be early tomorrow for the party!"

Boone laughed at this. "Haha, sure!"

He nearly moved back when Verge's face got too close to his. "I'm serious."

He, Penn, and Sashi blinked.

* * *

**Well, I hope that's alright! :D I realized I forgot a lot of Verge's different kinds of powers but I think I'm going to let her forget about some of them because I don't want her too overpowered hehe. Still hope this episode was good enough for you guys! Here's until the next episode~**


	11. Rockullan, Papyron, Scissorian

**Episode 9: Rockullan, Papyron, Scissorian**

* * *

**I'm nooot sure if my writing is any better than my writing 3 years ago but if you guys have any suggestions on how to improve it or even improve Verge, please leave it in the reviews! Remember to leave a favourite as well hehe thankss : ) )**

* * *

Penn, Verge, Boone, and Sashi were making their way to the Odyssey like they usually were. Verge was walking this time, and was wearing her red vest. She instinctively hid behind Penn when she saw a familiar girl she had seen before in Middleburg High. This made Penn look up to the brunette girl sitting on a bench who smiled and waved.

This made Penn and Boone smile and wave back. Penn then nudged his fairy friend to do the same. "Hey Sash, isn't that your best non-part-time hero friend, Jhoanne?"

Verge _was _about to wave, but Sashi slapped the fairy's hand away and glared at the girl from afar. Jhoanne frowned, packed her stuff, and hurried away. "I believe you mean nemesis."

Penn frowned too. "No, I meant friend. What happened?"

"Something that can never be forgotten or forgiven! A matter of personal honor! Jhoanne and I used to meet every Wednesday for boba tea. Until _yesterday."_

This made Verge roll her eyes and open the door for the four. "Girl, please. I was walking down the halls yesterday. Sashi waved to this girl and _just forgot to_ _wave back at you."_

"She didn't forget!" Sashi insisted. They all stamped in their time cards and passed through the theatre doors. "I know it!"

Penn waved his hand. "Come on Sashi, what's the big deal?"

He yelped when the Japanese girl pulled at his hair. "Weren't you listening?! She walked right past without even saying hello! And that's why our children's children will be taught to hate each other for all eternity!"

Verge hid behind Boone as she could practically see the flames heating up behind the girl.

"Blah blah blah blah free-minute Phyllis will never get back," the mechanic said from her workspace. "Even Karen the Bear tell better story. Good luck!"

* * *

"Wait, we're paper?"

As soon as they were zapped to the new world, Verge never felt lighter. She along with the others appeared to be made out of _paper_. Her entire form was in the same shape as her normal form but in an entirely different material. It felt weird. Penn, who was the first to speak, suddenly laughed.

"I'm very uncomfortable with this for some reason," Verge laughed lightly. "Now I really can't go near water! Can we get this mission over and done with?"

"Way ahead of you Verge," Sashi said. "We are the Papyrons! Penn is the King, Boone is a young prince, and I am the Papyron General. Our city's under siege by the Scissorians."

"Scissorians, huh?" Boone mused. "Wonder what kind of paper they are!"

Verge blinked at him. "Dude."

"What."

"We must neutralize the threat before autumn comes," Sashi continued. "It will be long and windy and the Papyrons will never survive if they're distracted by war."

"This is the weirdest game of rock paper scissors ever," Verge shook her head.

"I'm surprised you even know that game," Penn teased.

"_You hawkhead you taught it to me when I was eleven—"_

"_Wow _we could be here a while! When is Autumn coming?"

Sashi crossed her arms. "Tomorrow."

"Oh, _come on, _you could zap us in a _little sooner _next time, Phyllis!"

"What's our first move?" Verge asked.

"Well, I guess we could find a way to stop the Scissorian's attacks—"

"_Too late they're attacking."_

"_Wait what?!"_

The four moved to see the Papyron army at the castle gates, armed as the Scissorian army began to slash through the walls. "Here's Rippy!" Rippen in his Scissorian form with Larry stormed through the paper gate and the Scissorians screamed their battle cries as they cut their way through.

"Ah!" Penn grabbed Verge and Sashi and began taking off. "Run away! Run away! We have to get far away from here!"

"These Papyrons can turn into boats, right?" Boone called out.

"What? That's—well actually I think they can!"

Soon, each Papyron was lining up by the river, with some Papyrons willingly folding themselves into paper boats for the other Papyrons to ride on them. Verge watched as the Papyron Castle slowly began to crumble to shreds.

"How is paper supposed to beat scissors?" Penn cried. "It's impossible!"

"Truly!" one Papyron soldier put in. "Only the Rockullans may defeat the Scissorians!"

"Well, that would have been good to know _before _the battle! Alright, take us to the Rockullans!"

"Rockullans, huh?" Boone questioned. "Wonder what kind of paper they are."

Verge blinked as Sashi glared. "Dude."

"What."

It was a quick journey to the Rockullan Kingdom. Once the paper boats reached the area, they all unfolded, and the four heroes made their way to the gates. They were greeted by Rockullan soldiers that guarded the entrance.

"Make way for her Royal Majesty, Queen Igneous, and her Royal Highness, Princess Magma!"

More Rockullan guards marched forward – could rocks march? – and out came a snooty-looking rock with a crown on her head. A smaller, kinder rock followed suit, and she smiled prettily.

Boone was practically drooling just staring at her. "Whoaaa check out the princess!"

Penn raised an eyebrow. "She's a rock."

"She sure is. A rockin' rock!"

"Yeah…alright man, cool."

"You know what," Verge whispered at Penn. "Both of you fell in love with a girl with purple skin. Don't question it."

The paper king just shrugged, cleared his throat, and stepped forward, bowing. "Your Majesty! I, King of the Papyrons, seek the Rockullans' help."

Queen Igneous only scoffed. "The proud Rockullan people would never aid you Papyron trash! You deserve to be thrown into the recycle bin of history!"

"Well that wasn't very nice," Verge frowned.

Penn didn't know how to respond. "Uhh—"

Sashi stepped forward instead. "No one disrespects us like that! You just bought yourself a nemesis!" Just then, she jumped up and enveloped her paper body around Queen Igneous' rock one, and she shook violently.

"Let me go!"

"Whoa whoa whoa!" Penn held his hands up. "Ease up, Sash! Easy!"

"Unpaper me!"

"Ohhh wings, are the guards seriously not doing anything—"

"We're trying to make friends here, kay?" Penn reminded.

"Friends let you down," Sashi shot back. "The only way to get loyalty is through _sheer force!" _She continued to paper up Queen Igneous.

Verge flew around, trying to pull Sashi away. "Come on, Sashi! Also, what you said? Wow, very hurtful, what are we to you?"

Boone nodded in agreement, even if Sashi didn't see.

"Stop, stop!" The Papyron General finally moved away when the Rockullan Queen breathed out her surrender. "I'll help! I'll help!"

"Paper beats rock!" Boone realized. "Wait, that makes no sense."

"I know right," Verge crossed her arms. "I never got this game either."

Penn sighed. "Well thank you, Your Majesty—"

But out of sheer bitterness, Queen Igneous ignored him and turned to her army. "Follow the Papyron King to the Scissorian Kingdom! Help them defeat the Scissorians and end this war!"

The Rockullan guards obeyed and marched away.

The journey to the Scissorians' wasn't as long as the way to the Rockullans. Penn and the gang found themselves marching along with the rocks and breaking their way into the castle. Rippen shouted in terror as the Rockullans pounded on the Scissorians.

"Rock beats scissors!" Boone pointed out. "Now _that _makes sense!"

"Do you yield, Scissorian Aggressor!" Penn called out.

"I always yield!" Larry spoke up. "To pedestrians, to incoming traffic—"

"Larry, we yield—"

"—to old ladies who look like they're walking too slow—"

"Larry! Larry!"

"—but then they think you might speed up and walk a little fast, 'cause they—you might hit 'em, so I'm yielding to that!"

Rippen sighed. "We yield."

"To the dungeons, then!" Verge cried out, pointing the way as the Rockullans lead the new prisoners away. "Always wanted to say that."

In the Papyron dungeons, all the Papyrons gathered around to make sure all the Scissorians were away in their cells. Once Penn had made sure of that, he turned to his subjects.

"Citizens of Papyron! We have our city back!" The Papyrons began to cheer victoriously. "He-hey! Let's party 'til it's Autumn! Which, sounds like it's a long time from now, but it's actually tomorrow! Sooo…we party until tomorrow!"

Verge knocked on Penn's paper crown. "They get it, Zero." She smirked, he smiled back, and they did a tiny fist bump.

The Papyrons then began their partying in their Kingdom and it looked like they were ready to last a long time. Penn watched over the happy Papyrons, beaming as they waited until Autumn to be zapped back home.

"Why do I have the suspicious feeling that something's going to go wrong?" Verge mused, scratching her paper head.

"Eh, you worry too much, Verge," Sashi said. "What's the worst that could happen?"

"Well considering we're in the middle of what could possibly form a war, perhaps formed alliances behind our backs?" Both Sashi and Penn ignored her. "Okay, fine whatever! Hey, Sash, a moment?"

Sashi walked to the side with Verge perched on her paper head. "What's up."

"So I don't understand why girls get so frustrated over petty things."

Sashi blinked her brown eyes at the paper fairy. Verge blinked back. "…It's _not _petty, Verge."

"Suuure it isn't, since getting upset over the fact a friend didn't wave back at you is totally not paltry and irrelevant."

"Okay, _sometimes _there are just _some things _that mean a lot to people, especially girls! I mean, don't you understand how awkward it is to not be noticed by someone when you try to acknowledge them?"

Verge blinked. "I'm never acknowledged by anyone other than you, Penn, Boone Phyllis, and the Zero family."

This made Sashi wince. "Riiight…"

When a giant cake suddenly rolled up to them, the Paper King rubbed his hands. "A cake! Eh, it's great but it raises a lot of questions like, do we eat? I mean we're paper-thin."

Boone's chewing seemed to answer that. Verge also dove right in and began gobbling down.

Suddenly, they heard the familiar sound of the Scissorians charging in through the castle gates. All the Papyrons gasped. "I know!" Rippen laughed out. "I know! How can you miss us if we don't go away?!"

The Papyrons began to scream and run away as the Scissorians attacked once more. "This is exactly what I was worried about!" Verge yelled, her mouth full of cake.

Penn looked upwards and saw the Queen of the Rockullans grinning evilly at the scene. "Queen Igneous betrayed us! Come on!"

The four ran to the dungeons in hopes to get away. "Scissorians are right behind us!" Verge warned. "We gotta hide!"

They turned a corner and stood sideways, hoping it would work. Thankfully, the Scissorians didn't see their paper-thin bodies and rushed right past.

"We've got to attack the Rockullans!" Sashi said. "Don't worry. I'll make her _pay!"_

Penn quickly grabbed her arm before she could leave. "Wait, Sash! Don't you see? This could go on forever! Revenge is pointless!"

"_Revenge is pointless? _Someday I'll get back at you for saying that!"

"Sashi, it's true!" Verge insisted. "Revenge never got anyone anywhere. There's no rest until we find another way to solve the problem!"

Boone nodded. "Look, I may not be a fancy, college-ruled paper but I think all these guys just need to do like it said in that big, popular hit song everyone was singing three years ago: Everybody Chillax!"

The paper fairy blinked. "What."

"Remember?" Penn nudged her. "Anyway, maybe we don't have to defeat them! Maybe we're just supposed to make peace!"

Sashi looked baffled. "You want a t_ruce?! _With the queen who insulted and betrayed us?!" She stepped forward and Penn held his hands up defensively.

"Sash, sometimes you just have to forgive! Like that thing with Jhoanne. Did you even ask her why she didn't say hi that day? Maybe she didn't see you."

"Maybe she doesn't like you!" Boone added. At this, his three friends glared at him. "Uhh, I'm sure it's not that."

"Look, it's not easy making friends," Verge put in. "And when you do, you could actually find they're worth keeping. Every mistake is worth forgiving and forgetting." This made the paper king smile. "No matter how many mistakes they make."

The Papyron General finally smiled. "Let's just get this over and done with."

"On it!" Verge suddenly flew away and came back, her dust carrying a stick and paper clips. She had this idea to clip Boone to the stick and create a makeshift white flag with him. The paper fairy gave it to Penn, who smirked.

"Huh…Okay, thanks Vergie."

She dusted her friends and they flew back outside.

Scissorians only continued to chase the Papyrons, and the Rockullans got involved as well They screamed as they ran away, and Rippen, Larry, and the Rockullan royalties stood on a higher platform, watching it all. When the gang finally emerged, Penn stood atop the now-ruined cake and waved his Boone flag.

"Wait stop everyone! Just listen to me!"

Rippen gasped. "Penn Zero surrenders? That means I win!"

"I could surrender, but I don't think it would stop the fighting for long. That's why I propose…a _Peace Summit! _Peace for everybody!" All the Rockullans, Papyrons, and Scissorians began to cheer.

But Rippen only sneered. "How about a _Pieces _Summit? Because that's what I'm going to cut you into!" he laughed at his own little joke. "Get it? Peace? Pieces?"

Queen Igneous was not impressed and sighed. "Since the Scissorian King is so annoying and I don't want to have to deal with him on my own…I welcome a Peace Summit!"

"Great!" Verge fluttered her paper wings. "To the courtroom! That's what it's called, right?"

The royals and some soldiers gathered up to a room where Penn used Boone to write the Peace Treaty on. "Ahh that tickles!" the paper prince giggled.

Penn continued to write. "This treaty divides the surrounding area among all three of our uh…peoples, and creates an alliance where we agree to help and protect each other. Forever!"

Queen Igneous still looked unconvinced. "I'll only sign if the treaty _explicitly _outlaws Papyrons covering Rockullans!"

"That's our only _defense," _Sashi argued. "Here's the deal: sign that treaty, or I'm your new favourite outfit."

"The Rockullans will not have their concerns papered over!"

Sashi yelled out as she covered the Queen again.

"Let her go!" Rippen threatened, moving to Penn. "Or I'll cut the Paper King into paper dolls!"

"The first paper doll you'll have to cut is me!" Verge flew forward, her arms outstretched, to protect Penn.

"Stop!" a Rockullan soldier said. "If you hurt him, she'll completely cover my queen, who I've sworn to defend! So I'm afraid I'll be forced to bash your ugly face in!"

Everyone stood still, unsure of what to do.

Until, Boone stood up from the table, and began to sing?

"_Everbody chillax_

_We'll play sax_

_Let the water roll off our backs_

_Everybody chillax_

_Here's the facts_

_We're all gonna get some snacks_

_Everybody chillax!"_

Verge whispered to Penn and Rippen, "Is it me or has Boone been singing a lot." Both Kings shrugged.

Suddenly, Princess Magma hopped in the room, her face bright enough to light up the room. "I am in love with those golden tones!" She hopped on Boone, pinning him to the ground. "Let us marry at once!"

"What the dust doesn't that only happen to Disney princesses—"

"Okay," Boone cut the fairy off, beaming.

Queen Igneous gasped in horror. "No daughter of mine will _ever _marry a Papyron!"

"But mumsie!" the Princess cried. "I love his beautiful voice! I love his thin, flat body!" She began to sob, and Boone hugged her with one arm.

Verge blinked. "This is weeeeird." Penn and Rippen nodded.

"Magma…" Queen Igneous frowned.

Sashi frowned as well and looked at Boone, who shrugged. She reluctantly hopped off the Rockullan queen. "This is going too far. We need to find a way to put our differences aside! If Boone and Princess Magma _do _get married, our royal families will be related!"

Queen Igneous gasped in delight. "Then we can trust each other not to attack! Brilliant!"

Rippen, however, was unfazed by all this. "Are you fools done with your lessons? I'll never sign that treaty!" At this, Verge huffed and pushed him off the table. "Argh! As long as the war continues into Autumn, I win!"

"I heard enough!" A pair of Scissorian soldiers moved, and one of the pair was looking annoyed. "You don't have our people's best interest at heart! Take Mr. Ugly away!"

"To the dungeon with him!" his partner said.

"Oh, and the ugly remark, that was for him."

"Chillax, we're cool!" Larry assured.

"And I'm done listening!" Verge sighed. "What do you guys say we make that treaty official and get this rock and paper married?"

Her friends smiled as they watched Queen Rockullan sign Boone's butt, just before they zapped back home.

* * *

"Another job well done, team!" Penn said, stretching. "Feels good to be made out of flesh, bones, water, etc."

"Hey, it's still a few minutes before sunset," Verge pointed out. She grew to a bigger size and flew beside Sashi. "Maybe you could head over to Jhoanne's place? It's never too late to apologize?"

The short girl only sighed. "Do you think she could forgive me?"

Her fairy friend laughed. "If you can learn to forgive, anyone can!" She gave her brightest smile and the look in her eyes pleaded for her to try.

This made Sashi smile. She reached out, hugged Verge quick, and ran out the Odyssey, waving to her friends.

Penn ruffled the brunette fairy's head. "Oh, Divergent, how do you do it?"

"Hehe. I don't tell you everything."


	12. Be My Ghost

**Episode 10: Be My Ghost**

* * *

**Tbh I was REALLY confused with this episodes because I thought, shouldn't Penn and the gang be the ghost exterminators? Or whatever HAHA**

* * *

Today, the Light fairies were going to be working with the Water fairies in creating rainbows from water. However, since Verge was around, they found it easier to do their job because she provided the water they needed. The fairy princess was having lots of fun learning how to create rainbows as well. The Light fairies were very enthusiastic watching her work, since she was so cheerful and happy-go-lucky as she worked. Verge had gone helping fairies for hours but she seemed to extend her time with the Light fairies.

"I can't wait to show all that I've learned to Zero!" Verge chirped happily. She'd just created her longest rainbow yet, and she regrouped with four Light fairies that applauded her afterwards.

"But Your Highness, I thought you said your human friends don't know you're here," a Light fairy pointed out.

This made Verge frown. "Ah, yeah, Lumina…I try not to tell them I come here practically all the time. They know I visit, but not this much…" She looked away from her newfound friends and rubbed her arm. "They wouldn't understand."

The group looked at each other, frowning. "We understand, Divergent," another fairy said. "And we do hope things end up alright in the end with these human friends of yours."

"Thanks Ivan," the golden-winged fairy said, smiling. "Speaking of those friends, what time is it?"

"We don't tell time here, princess, we try not to."

"Wait then…I could be late!"

She fumbled around her leaf slingbag and brought out her portable MUT. "Um, can you guys tell my parents I'll be around for more lessons this weekend?"

"Sure thing, princess!" Lumina piped.

"Thanks guys, you're the best!"

* * *

When Verge zapped back, she had zapped back in Penn's house and flew as fast as she could to the Odyssey. She burst through the theatre doors, grew to a larger size, and flew above her friends' heads, who were already on the zap platform. She was panting as she flew tiredly, and Penn, Boone, and Sashi stared up at her.

"Verge?" Sashi spoke first. "You okay?"

"You are late." Phyllis leaned over the railing in her workspace, tapping her fingers impatiently.

"I'm sorry, I lost track of time—It's only been ten seconds cut me some slack!"

"Still, you don't show up at school anymore and you _have_ been late often, Verge," Penn said, frowning. "There's nothing wrong that's been going on, right?"

"What?" Verge looked down and ruffled her redhead friend's hair. "Come on, Zero. You know I don't tell you everything. Still, I can assure that everything is perfectly fine!"

Without another word, Phyllis zapped them in.

* * *

The first thing Verge heard was screaming. It sounded like Boone's girly scream so when she looked, she gasped to see three ghosts.

"Boone, it's me!" Penn complained.

"Sorry, I thought I saw a ghost!"

"You did. I'm a ghost."

Another scream from Boone.

"So am I," Sashi added. Another scream from Boone. "So are you!"

Another scream from Boone.

Verge sighed. "Boone—" Another scream from Boone. "I'm not even a ghost!"

"…Sorry, I think I'm used to it now."

Sashi began to check her Specs. "Alright—"

Another scream from Boone. "Sorry, thought it was a ghost."

Verge and Sashi exchanged glances. "Alright, we are social workers who are on our way to a social workers' convention in 1973, riding in a bus on an icy mountain road when we were suddenly hit by a meteor and became ghosts!"

The fairy blinked. "That was…strangely unexpected."

"I know, right? Anyway, we've been sent here to save Sonny, the ghost of a 1940s' comedian from extermination."

"Sounds simple!" Verge chirped.

"So I'm guessing you're not a ghost because there are other humans in this world," Penn mused. "But, how come you can see us?"

"I guess fairies can see all weird, magical things. Like that creepy girl over there."

She pointed down the hall they were, and they did see a tiny girl in white from afar. In a split second, she appeared way too close before them, and this made Boone and Penn scream and attempt to hug each other in fear. Verge jumped – can one jump while flying? – looking ready to scream, but then the ghost girl began to giggle. Her form changed shape until the gang saw a man with black hair and suit, leaning against the wall as he laughed into the microphone.

"Ghosts afraid of ghosts! Nice!" He giggled to himself some more.

Penn looked at his team. "And you must be Sonny!"

"And _you _must not have access to a mirror! Nice hair helmet! Is that to protect you from combs?" Penn tried to laugh, but it came out dry. Since Sonny was a ghost, he could change his form, and didn't help when he changed in forms that made his jokes feel more hurtful. "What'd you do, try to tell your barber, 'make my head look like a giant pimple, please!''

"Rude," Verge huffed, crossing her arms.

Boone nodded, pointing defensively. "Penn makes it work!"

But Sonny only gasped and floated over. "Wow! That is a big nose! It's like booger heaven right there! You could blow your nose and kill us all! If we weren't already dead!" This made Boone look self-conscious as Sonny then turned to the fairy, poking her in the forehead with one finger. "And you! If I thought these the rest of your friends were freak shows, you must be the main act! Were your parents an elf and a butterfly? Because you look like one crossover no one asked for!"

The fairy only frowned. "Wow. Touchy subject right there."

"Hey," Sashi floated in front of her and Boone. "Nobody insults my friends, except me."

Sonny only grinned. "I'm sorry Tiny, what did you say? I don't speak Chihuahua."

He mockingly barked, and Sashi rolled up one sleeve. "I'm gonna enjoy _this."_

The comedian ghost only laughed as he floated away. "Oh, I made the Chihuahua angry!"

He continued to bark as he floated through a door. Sashi tried to float through a mirror, but hit against it instead, falling to the floor as she rubbed her head. "We can't fly through glass?"

"Someone get this genius a helmet!" He had poked his head through the door and turned to Penn. "Hey you! Lend her your hair!" With that, he winked and disappeared again.

"I don't like this guy," Verge huffed.

"Me too," Boone agreed, rubbing his arms. "But he _is_ good at insulting."

"We have to track him down."

"Right," Penn nodded, agreeing. "Let's go after him!"

They all flew through the door, with Verge squeaking as she forgot she wasn't a ghost and hit her head on the door. She grumbled as she opened the door and flew behind her friends.

The four spread out and searched all around the hotel but still found no sign of Sonny. Verge wondered how they were even going to get someone who takes everything as a joke to take a situation seriously. Once she'd regrouped with her friends, Penn asked, "Any luck finding him?"

Boone sighed. "Nope." Sashi shook her head.

"I didn't find Sonny," Verge started. "But I did see Rippen looking around in one of the lounge rooms." She jabbed a thumb in the direction of said room, and her friend smirked.

"Nice! Show me where!"

Verge led the way and slowly opened the door to a room. She turned smaller and hid behind a wall as her friends poked their ghost heads right through it. "Hey, are you guys thinking what I'm thinking?" Penn questioned.

"That Ferris wheels are a rip-off because when you get off you're right back where you started?"

"I so agree." Verge nodded at Boone.

"Not even _close _though!" Penn said. "I was thinking, we should terrify Rippen! I mean, how often are we ghosts?!"

While Sashi and Boone smiled at the idea, Verge only forced hers. "I don't think it's possible for me though…"

"Eh, that's alright Vergie! Just watch and learn." Her friends disappeared behind the wall, and the fairy frowned, quickly flying to hide behind a curtain.

Verge watched as Boone's popped out from the curtain Rippen pulled away and shouted "Boo!" Rippen ran off shrieking in fear and tried to hide by a table. But Sashi's head appeared, and flashed her scariest ghost face after pulling her hair away. Rippen ran to the wall, still screaming, when Penn's face poked out of his stomach.

"_Heeere's Penny!"_

"_Nooo!"_

Ghost Penn took Rippen's arms and laughed. "Why are you hitting yourself? Why are you hitting yourself? Stop it, why are you—why would you ever hit yourself?" This made Verge giggle a bit, pushing her guilt and sorriness for the villain down to the bottom of her stomach.

Rippen's worries melted away when he heard Larry's voice say, _'Come on, Sonny, zing me again!' _"He's found the ghost! Way to go, Larry!"

The part-time villain ran out of the room and the fairy and ghosts came out of their hiding places. "Fun's over guys," Penn said. "It's time to go to work!"

The three ghosts disappeared by floating through the floor, and Verge tried to follow, but hit her head again. "Argh!" she shouted in frustration, and flew to find an elevator.

Flying was way slower than floating, so when she got to the floor where everyone was, her friends were already trapped behind a glass case and Rippen was pointing his gun at Sonny. Before she could get a chance to think, she flew up and jumped on the villain's face.

"_No!"_

"Argh!" The part-time villain clawed at his face, trying to get her off, and still continued to shoot at Sonny. Once the comedian was restrained, he shouted in pain and Larry could only stare in horror.

"Verge!" Penn cried from behind the glass cabinet, pressing his hands to it.

"Larry, quick! This is a two-man job! Open the gate to Limbo and I'll throw him through it! _OW she bit my nose!"_

"Don't do it Larry!" the fairy yelled, still clinging to Rippen's face.

"Listen to the crossover!" Sonny cried. "Limbo's a horrible empty place where nothin' ever happens! Like New Jersey!"

Larry _did _look regretful. "Can't we just…let him go? You'll leave now that you have your rubber chicken, won't you Sonny?"

"Yeah!"

Rippen looked frustrated. "Larry, we don't win unless we send Sonny to Limbo! That's our mission!"

"I'll give you a mission!" Verge yelled. "Get me off your face first!"

"_Would you stop scratching my eyebrows—"_

"Please!" Sonny pleaded at Larry. "You're my only friend!"

"You're a villain, Larry, this is our chance to finally win!"

The part-time minion was very reluctant, but Verge watched, horrified, as he opened a portal to Limbo. This gave Rippen a chance to finally yank her off his face and threw her in the cabinet. She didn't get a chance to recover. Rippen began to laugh maniacally and bring Sonny to the portal.

Larry couldn't bear the scene and dropped his gun, running out of the hotel crying.

Verge stared, understanding that the small man had somehow become friends with the ghost comedian. She looked up at her friends, feeling useless, but Penn only looked at her reassuringly and tried to squeeze her hand. Verge grew bigger and tried to push the glass cabinet to get them out.

But apparently, she didn't need to. Rippen turned the portal off himself, let Sonny go, and opened the cabinet. "Oh no," he said, his face blank. "Penn Zero, you've outsmarted me once again." He stepped inside the cabinet, letting the four go out. Rippen closed the door on himself. "Help! Help!"

"What the dust," Verge whispered. Her three friends shrugged in unison.

That's when Larry came back, no longer crying. "Sonny! You're still here!"

Sonny beamed. "And you're still an infant with a goatee!"

For some reason, Larry began laughing.

"Is that the ghost of Sonny the Rubber Chicken Insult Comic?" Everyone turned to see the owners of the hotel and a young woman walk through the doors and gaze at the group. The young woman was smiling up at Sonny, and this gave Verge the chance to shrink to a smaller size. "Your jaw-dropping putdowns of your rubber chicken and audience inspired a generation of insult comics! If he's performing here, I'm giving your hotel the coveted 8-and-a-half star hotel schmotel rating!"

This made the blonde owner gasp in excitement. "Whaaa? What do you say, Sonny? Would you stay and do your old act?"

"We'll fix up your old dressing room and like, feed you the organic locally-grown version of whatever ghosts eat!"

Sonny jabbed his rubber chicken in their direction. "You two morons have a deal!"

"Woo! Tobogganing!"

"Yeah!" Everyone cheered happily and Verge just crossed her arms.

"So we're all just going to ignore the fact Rippen has a heart?" No one responded. "No? Okay."

Before she knew it, everyone got their own toboggan and started sliding down the slope of the mountain. Penn, Boone, and Sashi shared their own toboggan and Verge was smaller now, sitting at the head of the toboggan and enjoying the ride with her friends.

"Somehow this mission was a success," Penn noted. "But what matters is, we made it out alive!"

"Funny, 'cause we're still dead," Boone joked.

"Haha! Yeah, yeah."

"Not funny because I can't relate," Verge said, pouting. "I wasn't a ghost today! You guys left me behind a lot!"

"Aww, Verge," Penn frowned, patting her tiny brown hair. "We didn't mean to."

"You're always so small anyway," Boone put in. "We just thought you'd been following!" This comment made Sashi jab him in the ribs with her elbow. "OW! What?!"

"We won't assume again," Penn promised, holding his finger out. "We promise we won't leave you behind again!"

Verge was hesitant, but she did love her best friends. As soon as they reached the foot of the slope, she gave a tiny fist bump, and they were zapped back home.

* * *

**Please send help it's 1am.**


	13. The Chinchilla

**Episode 11: The Chinchilla**

* * *

**Whoops sorry I've been going out lately :'DD**

**Alsooo pls read the author's note in the end when you're done with this!**

* * *

Uncle Chuck and Aunt Rose were off to have a vacation together, so they needed Penn and Verge to look after their beloved Chinchilla. Verge had been informed of this day many weeks ago but she wasn't looking forward to it. As much as she loved the little rodent, it still was very grumpy and very hard to deal with. And with Uncle Chuck and Aunt Rose gone, she knew Penn was going to have a difficult time.

They were outside the house now, as they put their things away in the cab. Aunt Rose held the Chinchilla and smiled at it. "Don't worry," she cooed, snuggling it. "Penn and Verge are gonna take good care of you while Mommy and Daddy are on the ten-day pancake cruise!"

"I'd tell ya," Uncle Chuck said, closing the trunk of the cab. "If I knew that boat was gonna have a No Pet Policy, I never would have made that contest-winning statue made outta pancake mix boxes!" He gestured to said statue, which resembled the Chinchilla, and was indeed made out of boxes and held together with maple syrup.

Just looking at it made Verge want to throw up. She remembered the past few months where they'd had nothing but pancakes for breakfast.

Aunt Rose put her sunglasses on her head and turned to her and Penn. "Let's see, we covered the three dust baths per day, and his deep tissue massage…"

"Oh! And don't forget his hip-hop dance class he's getting really good, Rose, Rose, give him a beat! Time to dance!"

Aunt Rose played music on her phone and Uncle Chuck took the Chinchilla and made him move. "Time to shake it up!"

However, the fuzzy little mammal only sneered, and Penn and Verge simultaneously crossed their arms.

"Aww, he's too shy!"

She and Uncle Chuck went in to hug the pet. "We are gonna miss you, so much!" Once they'd pulled away, Uncle Chuck finally handed the animal to his redheaded nephew. "Goodbye little guy, we'll see you soon, okay? Be a good boy now."

They both got into the cab and it drove off.

Penn looked empty. "Goodbye Penn, goodbye Verge, we'll miss you too." He looked down at the Chincilla, who growled in his hands.

Verge sighed, turning smaller and flying next to Penn's hands. He purred when the fairy ruffled his head, but growled again when she pulled away. "Look, let's just try to make the most out of the next ten days," she said, trying to smile at his friend. "It's only ten days, after all."

"Huh. _Only. _Well, let's get this over with. What's first on his schedule?"

Verge brought out a scroll from her pocket, while she flew next to Chicnhilla, and unrolled it. The paper reached all the way to Penn's shoes. "I don't even know."

The redhead sighed and took the tiny paper as they went inside.

"Okay, you don't like me," Penn said, once they were in the Chinchilla's bedroom. He looked through the animal's closet and brought out a blue suit with a red tie. "I don't know how much you like Verge, but nonetheless I'm only lucky she's here. We're stuck together, so let's just get through this."

The Chinchilla, who was sitting on his tiny bed, only snarled.

"He doesn't want to," Verge translated.

"That doesn't help."

"Well, _sorry?"_

Penn rolled his eyes and pointed a finger at the Chinchilla. "Don't. Start. You have a very challenging schedule—"

Before he could even continue, the mammal leapt off the bed and began running around his room. Penn yelped and dove after it. "Stop! Work with me!"

He tried to catch it while it was on the shelves, but it was too fast. Verge flew after it, tackling it to the ground. "Gotcha!"

Penn tackled them as well, into the three litter boxes labelled dust baths. As the dust formed a cloudy fog, he and Verge tried to hold the Chinchilla down and get him into the suit.

"Why do chinchillas need three dust baths a day?!"

"Don't ask me!"

"You're the animal expert here!"

Once he was placed on the bed, Penn smirked. "Well, I have to admit, this is even more _ridiculous _than I thought!" When the rodent bit his hand, he cried out in pain. _"Ouch!"_

* * *

"If we feed it too many pellets, it gets constipated, and if too few, it gets diarrhea!"

Two days passed, and Verge was visiting the Animal fairies that day, tending to small animals like bugs and insects. They were gathering fireflies for the Light fairies to feed light that night, but Verge was a bit distracted as it brushed her firefly's wings too much. Her Animal fairy friend, Rabbi, tried to point it out to her, but the firefly buzzed in annoyance and flew away instead.

"Animal fairies are supposed to understand animals," Rabbi said. "Have you been talking to it?"

"It's very unpredictable, thought I do understand it a bit. That's why I've been telling Penn to go easy on him a bit, but we're still very annoyed with the Chinchilla."

"Well then, my princess, the best I can tell you is to keep that iron fist but maintain your soft heart! Animals have feelings too. Keep it under control, but also try to continue whatever the heck you can do to make it open up to you and be behaved!"

At this, the fairy princess sighed. "Thanks, man."

"I'm a fairy."

"Oh, well…I know, that's just a saying on Earth—never mind, I have work!"

She brought her MUT out, and waved to her friend. He waved back with a smile.

* * *

Verge arrived in the Odyssey, just as her friends approached her. "I'm here!" she chirped.

"That's nice," Penn said distractedly, pushing past the theatre doors.

When Verge looked at Boone and Sashi for explanation, the Japanese girl sighed. "He's been talking nonstop about your little problem."

"Ah." It wasn't anything new. He's been the same yesterday, and kept blabbing about it all day at work yesterday as well.

As the gang stepped onto the platform and Verge flew above them, Penn spoke up. "You know, guys—"

At this, Sashi grabbed the front of his shirt. "If this is about the Chinchilla, I'll double-knot your vocal chords."

Penn glared and crossed his arms. "Well, _some _people are interested in my problems. Right Phyllis?"

In Phyllis' usual spot, Karen the Bear was wearing a white shirt with the Chinchilla's picture slashed out behind a red circle. Karen let out a low growl and pressed the zap button. Penn looked aghast as they entered the new world.

* * *

"_La la la la la la la la la la la la—"_

"Wait, not again." Verge flew away from her friends, feeling her old, cuddly form, but Penn was focused on something else.

"Wha? Where is everybody?"

The old plush town they'd left before now looked very deserted and grey. As Verge flew forward, she didn't see any signs of life in the houses, and it looked like no one had been around for a while. "Scary," she muttered.

"Okay…spec the Checs…uh, I mean check the Specs."

Pink Rabbit Sashi did. "Okay, the town's plushies are slowly being kidnapped! We must find them and bring them home by sundown tomorrow, or the town's charter will be revoked and the Quilted City will no longer be considered an official municipality! Meaning that—"

"They will lose the right to self-governance and will fall under the jurisdiction of the Quilted State!" Everyone looked surprised when they saw Boone had said that. **((A/N: I studied Political Science in high school and was happy that I understood this-))**

Suddenly, the earth shook, and the four felt it sounded like giant footsteps. They were ready to fight, but a snake plushie they'd met before, Dr. Hissy , emerged from his clinic and called them out. "Quick! In here!"

The gang rushed inside, Dr. Hissy barred the door, and a plush giraffe greeted them. "How you doin'?"

Dr. Hissy ignored it. "Thank goodness you're back! Everyone else has been taken by the giants!"

"The giant _babies?" _Sashi said, incredulous. "But we imprisoned them in a playpen!"

"Well they learned to climb outta their playpen,"

"A parent's worst nightmare," Verge sighed.

"Exactly. Now, they can't be stopped. They're _toddlers!"_

It would've been such an achievement. But to the plush toys, it was their doom. The ground shook again, and they all looked up as they heard what they thought was the giant toddlers approaching. As everyone looked up, only Penn and Verge gasped as they saw the creature that roared as it was tearing apart the building's roof.

"The Chinchilla?!"

The animal wasn't in its blue suit, and instead just had a black bowtie around his neck. It reached down to pick up a plush, but Verge pushed everyone out. "Run!" she shouted, and everyone made their way out of the building and hid behind a rock.

"How did that annoying The Chinchilla get here?!" Sashi demanded.

"I think I have an idea," Penn said, smirking. "Once I placed it in its blue suit for the day, it used its tiny chainsaw to cut down the bars of the cage I put it in! Then it found a way to slip into my bag because Verge didn't see it—"

"Why is it my fault?!"

"It slapped its abs in gratitude for the pet yoga classes it took to give it the core strength it needed! Then just when Karen zapped us into the world, it hopped onto the platform to bite me and hitch its ride!"

"You didn't say ow when we zapped," Boone pointed out.

"I was trying to make the story more entertaining. I didn't hear you complaining about the chainsaw or the abs!"

"But it's not my fault it's here!" Verge shouted. "Why would you accuse—"

The Chinchilla roared once again and began tearing through more plush houses. Penn hopped to action. "Come on! We gotta stop him!"

They rushed to the forest to go after it, but remembered their true mission when they looked up and saw Giant Toddler Rippen push down the trees and laugh evilly. Giant Toddler Larry also appeared, and the gang hid behind another rock. They seemed to communicate with each other for a bit before Rippen found Dr. Hissy and the small giraffe in their own hiding spots.

"Oh no! We have to do something!" Verge cried. "Oh, of all the days that Chinchilla had to join us, it was on the day we appeared in a world where it's tearable!"

"It's not that bad," Penn said, patting her shoulder.

"What? I meant _tear_-able." She made a tearing motion with her hands.

"Oh. I thought you meant it's downright horrible."

"Well, nah, this place is cuddly—"

"_Look, _Verge is right," Sashi said. "We have to do something! They're taking the town's plushies!"

"You guys go!" Boone said. "I'll deal with the Chinchilla."

He couldn't, because the Chinchilla kicked him away. _"He's all yours, Penn!"_

Verge rolled her eyes as the dog plush toy ran forward. "Zero, no!"

Too late. Penn screamed as the rodent picked it up, Verge flew up, trying to pull him away.

"Let me go! Hey, no, not the arm!" Too late. The Chinchilla ripped it right off, and Verge held back a laugh as she remembered old times. He was thrown away easily after. _"I'm cancelling your massage!"_

Knowing he would land on soft land anyway, Verge tried to face the Chinchilla. "Look, the Chinchilla," Verge said, holding her hands out. "This is a new place, we know, but please, kindly give us Penn's arm—"

"Give me Penn's arm, furball!"

"Oh geez."

This made the Chinchilla eat it instead, and Sashi jumped at the furry animal. It slapped her away with his tail, and he rushed off into the woods.

"Oh wings, oh wings," Verge cursed, watching the Chinchilla run away and the giant toddlers toddle away with Dr. Hissy, the giraffe, and Boone. She flew to get Sashi, dusted her, and dusted Penn. "Let's hurry and get your arm fixed, Zero."

Penn groaned as he was lifted into the air. "Sounds like a plan, I guess…"

They went back to the clinic, and he opened a drawer, where there were a lot of replaceable plush arms. Verge got a needle and thread and turned to Sashi. "Get the planes ready. I'll hurry with Zero."

The pink rabbit nodded and left.

Penn approached her, a crab's arm in his hand, and the fairy toy blinked. "Really?"

"What? It's so much better!"

She rolled her eyes playfully and began to sew the new arm on. "I wonder why the Chinchilla is so riled up."

"Ugh, who cares," Penn said, frustrated. "Let's just hurry and get this mission over and done with so we can get it out of here!"

They exited the clinic, and Sashi honked the horn on her plane. The new planes had balls of yarn strapped to the wings; when she started hers up, Penn used his new arm to spin the propeller on his. Verge flew over both planes as Sashi and Penn gave each other supposed thumbs-ups (Penn's new arm snapped at him). Together, they took off into the air.

"I see a giant gorge up ahead!" Verge reported. "A giant pit, or something."

"That must be where they're keeping the plushies!" Sashi cried. "Let's hurry!"

"Felt Five, standing by," Penn spoke. "Alright, let's tangle some angles! Turn and burn!" The target was focused on, and the two planes flew in, with Verge flying right behind them.

They launched the balls of yarn and began to circle the toddlers. Larry was in awe of them, saying, "Pretty shoelaces!" Both toddlers eventually fell to the ground, and the citizens of the Quilted City began to cheer. But, not for so long.

At the edge of the gorge, the Chinchilla stood, blocking the sunlight, and the toddlers began to shout "Chichi! Chichi!"

"Oh no," Verge watched in horror as the Chinchilla attacked the balls of yarn, and rolled them around, as if intentionally messing with Penn's plan. "No, the Chinchilla!"

"Bad the Chinchilla!" Penn scolded. "That's not your yarn!"

"Zero, don't! It's just misunderstood!"

But the rodent still took off with both balls, and the yarn loosened up around the toddlers' legs, setting them free as the Chinchilla carried the planes away.

"Mayday, mayday!"

"We've been the Chinchilla'd!" Penn shouted. "Disengage!"

Verge was too busy pulling Penn off his plane and hurriedly making him land safely. For a moment, she internally freaked out because her action somehow made her feel conscious about her wings. She'd felt a tiny tear behind her, and she felt like they were going to fall off. But then, Verge remembered this was the Plush Toy World, and tried to reassure herself anything that happened to her in one world couldn't possibly happen to her in real life.

When Sashi leapt off her plane, Larry caught her as she floated into his hands with a parachute, and soon the pink rabbit was trapped along with everyone else.

Penn gritted his teeth in annoyance. "Ugh! The Chinchilla!"

The said animal was running off with the balls of yarns, leaving a trail behind him. Penn looked thoughtful as he watched it leave and Verge looked down at the gorge, feeling panicked. "Uh, I can conjure up a gust of wind strong enough to get everyone back! I could flood the gorge—no, they're made of plush and they'll drown…uh—"

"Verge! We have to get our balls of yarn back! But, I think there's something wrong with the Chinchilla. Let's get to it, quickly!"

Coming back to her senses, Verge nodded slowly. "I think I know what's going on…" She dusted Penn with fairy dust, and together they flew after their pet.

They eventually arrived at a cave not too far away. Penn heard the familiar purring he heard whenever Verge was petting him. As they went inside, they saw the Chinchilla _playing _with the balls of yarn. It wasn't growling or had that grubby face it usually had, but actually looked _happy _for once.

"Awww!" Verge couldn't help gushing at the scene and went to rub the rodent behind its large ears. "You're so adorable right now!"

"Verge, don't patronize him," Penn sighed as the Chinchilla purred more.

Once he heard the voice, the Chinchilla stopped playing and leapt forward, snarling at the plush dog.

"Whoa, whoa!" Verge flew in front, holding her arms out to shield Penn.

"We're on your side!" Penn defended. "He-hey, Chinchill-out!"

The Chinchilla growled. "That didn't help," Verge deadpanned.

"Heh, sorry, I've been saving that."

"Look, Zero, this is one of the reasons why I'm telling you to lay him off a bit."

"Yeah, I get it…but why didn't you be direct with me?!"

"I don't tell you everything," Penn raised an eyebrow. "Hey, I didn't know his deal either!"

Penn sighed and turned to the Chinchilla and moved near it. "I think I get you now. Chuck and Rose have your whole life scheduled. You never get to do anything you want." The Chinchilla's face softened when Penn took its bowtie off. "If you help us, I promise to make sure you always have a ball of yarn so you can unwind when Chuck and Rose's schedule gets to be too much!"

At this, the Chinchilla purred. "I tried many times to convince Chuck and Rose to do something," Verge put in. "But, with Penn's voice heard, surely they can't deny us both!"

"So…deal?" Penn asked, holding his regular arm out. The Chicnhilla ate it, and Verge giggled. Penn wasn't amused. "You've got a little cotton on your cheek…there, you got it."

Verge just laughed and did a tiny fist-bump with his claw.

He hopped aboard the Chinchilla's back as the Chinchilla spat out Penn's arm. Verge took her needle and thread, and quickly sewed it on. "Thanks!" Penn said, and the rodent gave a little chatter. Verge flew above it, but the plush dog patted the seat behind him. "Come on!"

"Huh? I can fly!"

"Aw, when will you get to ride the Chinchilla's back again, Verge?"

"Probably on most days, since he's my size when I'm fairy-sized?"

"Just once, with me! Please?"

Verge huffed, but sat behind him nonetheless. Penn took her plush arms with his claw gently and wrapped it around his waist. As the Chinchilla took off, the fairy toy felt herself blush.

They arrived back at the gorge, seeing Toddler Rippen and Toddler Larry holding onto Sashi as they danced. As Penn saw this, he instantly called out.

"_Hoooo! Riding the Chinchilla!"_

Rippen and Larry were going to walk away, but once Penn and Verge got off, the Chinchilla began beatboxing, somehow singing, and dancing to his own beat. The giant toddlers were very amused and began to climb their way out of the gorge, giggling as they followed the rodent.

"Citizens of the Quilted City!" Verge announced. "We've come to take you home!"

The citizens cheered. As Penn watched the toddlers leave, Boone cried out, "Wait! Come back and play! Come back and—"

Tired of his nonsense, Sashi tore his thread mouth off, shutting the monkey up. Boone glared.

Penn and Verge chuckled.

The sun set down and night fell just as the last citizen reached the city. Everyone cheered as their town was saved, and Mayor Pink Panda approached the heroes. "Thank you, once again, for saving our town from the toddlers! And from that horrible giant beast!"

The Chinchilla growled, but Penn spoke up to defend it. "Actually mayor, that giant beast saved this town. I too used to think the Chinchilla was something to be feared and later killed. But now, I see—"

"Whatever," Mayor Pink Panda rolled her eyes and held her hand out. "Give him the key to the city and let's all move on with our lives."

The Chinchilla reached out and tore her arm right off. Penn looked up at it. "You have a little uh, cotton in your cheek…there you got it."

Verge sat atop the animal's furry head, ruffled it, and the Chinchilla purred as they got zapped back home.

* * *

Verge saw the Chinchilla on top of Penn's curly red hair and reached down to pick it up and cradle it in her arms. "I know, I like to hang out there too," she joked.

"Will you stop talking about the Chinchilla now?" Boone asked hopefully.

Penn just rolled his eyes and Verge landed next to him. "It won't bother us for a long time," Verge assured, tickling the rodent's belly. The Chinchilla actually _giggled _and the fairy held it out. "Awww! You're just so cute and judged!"

She flew out of the Odyssey, and Penn laughed, gazing at her with a smile as she left.

Sashi had to nudge him in the ribs to get him to snap out of it.

Meanwhile, Verge checked behind her back for a brief moment. Didn't look like they were coming off any time soon.

* * *

**Hope this chapter was okay! I was actually serious about it hehe. **

**Also, just sayin, but if you want your character to be in the next special chapter, please PM me or put it in the comments! I have an idea for it, but I'm gonna need a bunch of people to interact with Verge hehe. Of course, I'll credit you if your character gets in! Your character is either going to be a minor character or a character I'll focus a lot on, depending on how I feel about this special episode c: Won't give much detail on what I'll do but I'll say this: **

**I need human characters to pose as Middleburg High students! Specifically students that like art hehe**

**Please take this seriously guys, and I hope to see some of you sending in their characters!**


	14. The Kobayashis

**Episode 12: The Kobayashis**

* * *

**HI GUYS pls remember to check my author's note in the last chapter! I really need a few more characters for the special episode I'm writing **** Preferably humans as Middleburg Central High students, but fairies like Kinghammer Publishing's is good too! Thank you btw, and Charr777 for submitting your characters so far!**

**I'm actually inspired to draw all the characters after the special episode, so please look out for that! I can't give the link, but look for TheNightShades on deviantart, Iamabeeliever on tumblr, and beelieverdraws on Instagram pls!**

**Also, sorry if I'm being super slow with this story, I keep getting headaches and usually no motivation**

* * *

Somehow, Boone had convinced Penn and Verge that Sashi had invited them to her house that day. He'd claimed he had an invitation to prove it, but as they approached the apartment, Verge began to have her doubts.

"This is still very fishy," she mused.

"Sorry," Boone replied. "I brought that can of picked fish again!"

"What? No, I mean why are we here?"

"I told you! Sashi invited us!" He waved a piece of paper under her nose. Verge pushed it away, pullng at the vest that covered her wings.

"I just don't like that I have to be in this vest again…I mean, they know I'm a fairy!"

Penn frowned as he took the said "invitation" from Boone and they walked towards the door with a "Congratulations George!" banner over it. "I get Verge, though. It's just weird, is all. Sashi always keep sfamily stuff private and then all of a sudden she invites us to her brother's party?"

Boone only smiled. "Weird, right?"

Penn took one look at the invitation again, with his fairy guide looking over his shoulder. "Wait…this looks a lot like your handwriting on the invitation. And then it's signed _Boone, _but then someone crossed it out and wrote Sashi, and then misspelled Sashi!"

At this, Boone just smiled.

"What the dust, man?" Verge crossed her arms, her brows furrowed.

Penn also had his hands on his hips. "Boone! What did she really say about this party?"

The brunette boy looked lost in thought for a moment, to which Penn and Verge exchanged worried looks before he spoke. "She wasn't really clear…but, we can't miss this! Her brother George has made All City Cheese Tasters team!"

He opened the door, and they instantly saw the Kobayashi family, along with some of George's friends at a table a few feet away. Sashi was nowhere in sight, until they heard her voice singing out, "Who wants cuppy cakes?"

The Japanese girl wobbled over, a plate of cupcakes in her hands. Penn, Boone, and Verge exchanged looks with their eyes as Sashi clumsily dropped all the treats and tripped over the cat before landing on the bean bag chair. Her family and George's friends laughed.

"Classic Sashi!" Mr. Kobayashi chuckled, nudging his wife.

Together, Penn, Boone, and Verge, echoed out, "Sashi?"

The girl looked startled to see them.

"You guys missed out!" Mrs. Kobayashi said, holding out a tray of drinks. Penn and Verge each took one. "We just played Tape the Tail on the Donkey!"

Boone frowned. "Don't you mean Pin the Tail?"

Mr. Kobayashi looked aghast. "Walk around blindfolded with a sharp pin in hand? That's a little dangerous for the Kobayashi family. Right, little shnoopsie?"

Sashi laughed nervously as her dad ruffled her head. "You bet, Pop!" She looked more mad as she approached her friends.

Penn shook his head lightly. "But danger doesn't bother Sash—"

He got cut off when Sashi shoved a cupcake in her mouth, laughed at her parents again while holding a thumbs up, and glared at the redhead. "My parents still don't know I'm a part-time sidekick! Don't blow my cover, morons!"

Penn gulped down his cupcake in response.

"Wow, Sash," Verge said, frowning. "Why haven't you?"

The girl had no response to that. Before she could even say anything, Mrs. Kobayashi pulled Verge aside and smiled sheepishly. "I'd like to apologize for making you hide your beautiful wings, Verge! It's just that, ah—"

"It's fine, Mrs. Kobayashi," Verge replied. "I get it. George and his friends don't know, yeah?"

"Yes, well…if they knew, I bet George would be delighted to know his big sister was friends with someone as delicate and fragile and adorable as you!" The woman couldn't help patting the fairy's head.

Those words made Verge's mouth drop. If her wings were out, they would've drooped. Adorable she understood, but delicate and fragile? Is that how humans viewed fairies?

"Speech! Speech!" Mr. Kobayashi's voice called out.

Everyone had gathered by the trophy shelf as George's dad helped raise him up as he placed his Cheese Tasting trophy on it. It went along with the other trophies he had won before. George began to speak. "A wise man once said you don't taste cheese with your mouth, you taste it with your soul? Um, I happen to disagree, I think um, just technically you taste it with your mouth?"

His dad and his friends began to lift him up more, cheering, "George! George! George! George!"

Sashi looked down as she stared at the floor. Boone made it worse by asking, "Hey Sash? Where's all your trophies?"

"Unfortunately they don't give trophies for working at Fish Stick on a Stick," Mrs. Kobayashi chuckled. "Sashi hasn't found her 'special thing' yet!"

At this, her daughter forced a smile. But Sashi's friends could see her disappointed face that fell right after.

Verge nudged Penn and whispered, "Do we bake another cake?"

The redhead only sighed.

* * *

The next day, at work, the quartet had a mission that involved going back to the Knight dimension. They had to fend off Rippen's troll minions from storming the castle, and so far they seemed to be doing pretty well since they had time to chat. Boone was turning trolls into cupcakes and eating them. Verge and Sashi were fairies in the air, with Verge attacking with nature magic and Sashi shooting them down with her bow and arrows.

As they fought the trolls, Penn raised a question as he brandished his sword. "Sash, why don't you just tell your parents the truth?"

"I can't! They're too protective!" Sashi shot an arrow at a rock, making it fall on a troll. "But I wish I could tell them! If only so I could stop carrying that stinky Fish Stick uniform around!"

"Why do you even have that?" Verge sighed, jumping off a troll in order to create a tidal wave that carried the troll away in a flood. "Haha, yes!"

"So I could fool my parents! Hyah!" Sashi grabbed one of the trolls' weapons, spun quickly, and knocked all the trolls to the ground, yelling, "Duh!" She took a troll by the front of his shirt and shouted, "Face! Meet fist!" before punching it.

"Nice one!" Verge called out, summoning her largest whirlwind, and sending a large number of them hurling away in a tornado.

However, she didn't see that Sashi was close to it, so Penn had to call out, "Sashi! Look out!"

The small fairy kicked a troll into the tornado in her place, moving back. "Hyah!"

Boone shot more of his magic at trolls, but he almost shot one at Penn. He managed to duck down in time and shout, "Boone, watch it!"

"Sorry!" the wizard called.

"We're not actors in some movie!"

"Zero, watch out!" Verge called, when she saw Boone was yet again, shooting blindly.

"Ow!"

"Sorry…!"

Penn glared at his friend as they all just continued fighting. "This isn't a game! Okay? This is very real! This is a very real, very dangerous, situation! Once again, not a game!"

"Why are you saying these things, Zero?!" Verge yelled.

"Verge, look behind you!"

But she didn't need any saving. Verge knew how to kick butt too. She kicked a troll in the nose, punched another in the gut, and did the same move Sashi did that knocked all the trolls away, just by spinning around and making winds appear. It threw all the trolls off balance and away from the castle.

Meanwhile, Sashi knew that there were just too many to fight, so she took Verge's winds and an instant bomb. While all the trolls were in one place, the fairy took the bomb and threw it. She flew away as quickly as she could before it exploded in a second.

All the trolls were weakened, and the blast was so strong that the trolls were no longer in sight. Verge gad managed to use protection magic to cover Penn and Boone from the blast, and she was worried Sashi had been caught up in the explosion. Luckily, she had flown high enough to avoid it. If she was any slower, she might've died.

To this, her friends cheered from below. "Let's go, Sashi!" Verge shouted out.

Once they were zapped back, Penn fist-bumped with Boone, tiny fist-bumped with Verge above him, and nudged Sashi's shoulder. "Once again we have Sashi to thank for risking her life to win the mission!"

She only brushed it off. "It's all in a day's w—_wha?"_

Standing before the four were Sashi's parents. And they did not look happy.

"Young lady, _we need to talk." _Verge shuddered. Mr. Koabayashi actually looked very scary when he was mad.

He pushed Sashi past the theatre doors. Sashi's mother looked at Verge one last time before looking at Phyllis. "We need to talk. Whatever this is she's been doing…she's never doing it again." With that final word, she followed her husband out the door.

Phyllis didn't say anything as she followed as well. The remaining three were speechless.

* * *

The next day was a weekend, so they didn't get to see Sashi. Though when Penn, Verge, and Boone walked to the Odyssey, the fairy immediately began assaulting Boone with questions. "What do you think Sashi's parents told her? Do you think she'll be here today? Why hasn't she called any of us?!"

"She's been like this all night and all morning," Penn sighed, crossing her arms.

Verge grew bigger and shook his shoulders, making him let out a gasp. "This is serious!" She stopped to put her vest on and continued, "What if she got in big trouble because of us?"

"Sashi will be fine!" Boone tried to reassure. "Hopefully."

But when Penn pushed the doors of the Odyssey, Phyllis dropped in saying, "No Sashi today!" Verge nearly fainted in Boone's arms. "I got best sidekick I could find on short notice."

* * *

What Phyllis "found" was Old Man Middleburg, and from that one mission in the Clown dimension alone the three knew he was a terrible addition to the quartet. Penn, Boone, and Verge found themselves tied up and trapped in a pie underneath a giant pie-cutting knife trap. They had no way of escape, and all the old man could say was "I give up. I surrender!"

"_The pie-cutting ceremony begins in ten seconds!"_ an announcer's voice boomed out.

"Are you pulling my wings?" Verge glared. She was stuck in yet another cage, and did _not _stop kicking at it, in hopes of escape.

Penn, who was holding her cage, raised an eyebrow. "Uh, hello? Sidekick? Any chance you could, you know, _do something?!"_

The old man squinted his eyes. "What? You want me to stew something? Huh, this doesn't seem like the time or the place, lady!" At that, he passed out and began snoring.

"Ugh!" Verge cried out, grabbing the bars of her cage. "It's no use!"

Boone held his hand out to Penn sadly. "It has been an honor, sir."

When Penn took it, Boone began breaking out into tears, and Penn began suffering from a shock from the joke button around the part-time Wiseman's palm. _"Good one…Boone!"_

The announcer's countdown finished, and in a split second, the knives fell down.

* * *

"Wow!" Boone cheered, as he and his friends exited through the theatre doors. "I can't believe we managed a miraculous, last-second win like that!"

"That whole thing happened so fast!" Verge said, turning small and doing a flip in the air. "Faster than my fast-flying skills!"

Penn grinned at the two. "I bet if we even described it, no one would even believe it!"

The three paused.

Then they watched as Karen the Bear held Old Man Middleburg in her jaws, and Phyllis helped her lead them out. "Karen the Bear, remember not to puncture jugular. Very messy, even on sidewalk." As Karen spat the sleeping old man out the doors, Phyllis called out, "Very sorry, just not good fit, best of luck, goodbye!" She walked away muttering, "Hard to get out blood. Very hard. Hours to scrub."

"What was that about?" Verge mumbled.

"I don't know but I know one thing," Penn started, sighing. "Let's face it, we got lucky today. We need Sashi back!"

"I agree!" Verge sobbed, blowing into Penn's shirt. "I miss her! That old man was rubbish!"

"_Okay _don't do that again. Maybe it's time the Kobayashis see how important Sashi's job is."

"But how?" Boone questioned.

"_Kidnap and ransom!"_

Everyone was shocked when they heard Verge was the one who yelled that out. The pale fairy blushed and cleared her throat. "I mean…maybe we should invite them. Phyllis has all of Sashi's best moments recorded. We could show them that video!"

"I was thinking the same thing," Penn beamed. "And if it doesn't work out?"

"_Let the Kobayashis take our place!/Let the Kobayashis suffer our wrath!"_

Penn and Verge said the same things at the same time, and again, Verge blushed as her friends stared at her.

* * *

The next morning, Verge and Penn stopped by at the Kobayashis. It was their job to make sure they were at the Odyssey later that afternoon. Verge was nervous and was unsure of how they would react. Sure enough, the moment they stepped in the apartment, Mr. Kobayashi glared.

"If you're here to convince us to let our daughter continue working with you hooligans again, then you might as well leave!"

"Sylevester!" Mrs. Kobayashi scolded.

"What?"

Penn laughed lightly. "Actually, that's exactly what we're going to do…"

Sashi appeared, entering the room with a look of surprise. "Penn? Verge? What are you—"

"We're bringing you to the Odyssey!" Verge declared. "Not just you, but we're hoping you and your parents. Mr. and Mrs. Kobayashi, please give us a chance to show you just how much we _need _Sashi on this team."

"I'm not buying any of it!" Sashi's dad said stubbornly, turning to his daughter. "It's bad enough we let you hang out with this _creature. _None of us had any idea you were friends with a bunch of troublemakers as well!"

The words and manner he acknowledged Verge made the fairy flinch and tug at her vest. Penn squeezed her shoulder gently, feeling her discomfiture, before turning to take a step towards Sashi's parents. "Please sir, ma'am. All we ask is a few hours of your time. You might discover a lot."

The Kobayashis exchanged looks before Sashi's dad sighed. "Fine. But only because this is good family bonding!"

Sashi grinned and so did Penn. "Great! Thank you, and for the record," He looked behind at his fairy friend for a second. "Verge isn't a creature. She's one of mine, Boone's and Sashi's closest friends. She may be a fairy but she's more human than most of us."

At this, Verge smiled softly.

* * *

Later, the Kobayashis were sitting in a couch before a screen that was projecting a video of montage of all of Sashi's greatest moments. Penn was sitting in between Sashi and Boone (who was sitting on the armrest). Verge was on his shoulder, and the redhead could feel her shaking. He knew that she, as well as he did, wanted so much for Sashi to be allowed back on their team. If this wouldn't work…well, they had a plan B.

Once the video ended, Penn gestured at the screen. "See? No one can do what Sashi does! She saves millions! Everyday! It's what she was born to do!"

Mrs. Kobayashi gave a polite smile. "You guys…it's clear you care about Sashi but, I think we know our own daughter."

Penn exchanged glances with Boone and Verge. "Okay, well at least we tried…_Phyllis! Zap them now!"_

Phyllis pressed a button and the three Kobayashis were lifted into the air. Sashi, who was the only one who knew what was going on, shouted out, "_Penn! Verge! Boone! Phyllis! You'll all pay for this!"_

Once they were zapped away, Boone said nervously, "I hope this works."

"It has to," Verge insisted. "We need Sashi."

"If plan doesn't work," Phyllis called. "First ever failed mission rests on you. Not them."

"Aw, chill it, Phyll-it!" Penn joked. "Sorry that was bad—with Sashi around I'm sure they'll be fine!"

"Guess all we can do now is hope." Boone sat at the front row seats, suddenly holding a bowl of popcorn as he watched Sashi check her Specs.

Verge sat beside him. When Penn took the seat next to her, his fairy friend smiled shyly. "Thanks for standing up for me earlier."

The redhead smiled and winked at her. "Anything for my favorite fairy."

"I'm the only fairy you know!"

"Not true! We've been in tons of fairy dimensions! Including yours!"

"Wooow," Verge chortled as she lightly punched his shoulder, and Penn laughed as well.

As Boone chomped on his popcorn, Verge quickly reached over to squeeze Penn's hand lightly. His blue eyes widened a bit, but softened as he glanced down at his friend. Verge continued to watch Sashi, but Penn nearly couldn't take his eyes off Verge.

"Looks like things are going well!" Boone cried out happily, as he saw Sashi reason out with her parents. With the way her parents looked at her lovingly, it raised hope in Verge's and Penn's hearts.

"All right!" Penn cheered. Verge pumped her fist eargerly.

They along with Phyllis watched as the Kobayashis fought in the Outer Space world, and Sashi's parents served as a distraction as their daughter went to detonate the bomb that threatened the villagers. Verge was laughing when the part-time sidekick's parents didn't seem to know how to Shnurkons' ship. Penn straightened in his seat when they noticed Rippen wasn't there.

"Huh, what do you know," Penn mused. "Does that mean no art class tomorrow?"

"Yay," Verge smiled.

Her smile dropped when the real leader of the Shnurkon's pressed a button, and somehow the countdown to the bomb got faster. "Oh no!" Boone gasped, eating even more of his popcorn.

"So this is what it's like to watch us on missions," Penn said, rubbing his chin.

Verge and Boone began cheering loudly when Sashi knocked down Shnurkons left and right, before throwing away the Shnurkon leader off his ship, and using it to fly the bomb out into space. It exploded in the stars, and for a moment everyone was concerned about whether she had joined the explosion, but the part-time sidekick flew back in in the one ship part it had left. Once she flew off of it, the ship part hit the Shnurkon leader, sending him away, and Sashi's three frieds let out an "Awww" as they watched her hug her parents.

* * *

Later that night, Verge had surprised Sashi with a special trophy she and Phyllis made together, which was labeled "Sidekick of the Month: Sashi Kobayashi." Her family, Boone, and Penn clapped as Verge placed it on the table, and the fairy – who was now free to fly around the house – flew above and ruffled her friend's hair. Sashi rolled her eyes playfully as she held it up, and her brother George held up a plate of cheese.

"Congratulations. Enjoy a celebratory bite of this camembert not to be mistaken for its softer, less complex cousin, Bra—"

"Not now, George," Mrs. Kobayashi interrupted politely.

"Sorry."

"Hey, uh," Penn spoke up. "Sorry for the whole zapping-you-off-to-a-deadly-alternate-universe-without-your-consent thing."

"It was Zero's and my idea," Verge said sheepishly, flying over. She had a handful of camembert bites in her arms, and George looked shocked, as if wondering when she had taken them. "We're really sorry."

Mr. Kobayashi only smiled and placed a hand over his wife's shoulder. "It was the only way we could see how important Sashi's job truly is. And who knows? We might just join you on your next far-out mission."

"Holy macadoodle," Sashi deadpanned.

"Oh my, holy macadoodle," George chuckled. "L-O-L."

"Listen, Verge," Mrs. Kobayashi said. "We would also like to apologize for our behavior towards you. We completely misjudged you, twice. We are very lucky to have you, along with Penn and Boone, as one of Sashi's friends. We trust that she's in good hands."

"And wings," Sashi joked, linking fingers with Verge and grinning.

Verge chuckled. "It's no problem, Mrs. Kobayashi. I'm just really glad our Sashi's staying."

"Thanks for helping, Divergent."

At this, the fairy smiled. "Anything for my girl best friend."

The two shared a warm hug.

* * *

**I feel like I wanna add to this…but maybe later?**

**Anyway, hope you guys like it! Please leave a review and a favorite, and remember that if you have any OCs that you might want me to write into the next special chapter, PM me! I'll be sure to credit you!**


	15. Cereal Fugitives

**Episode 13: Cereal Fugitives**

* * *

**I actually might delay the special episode because I'm still in need of some OCs guys! At least one more! **

**Also, unpopular opinion: gonna be honest, not looking forward to writing about The Last Mountain Beast…AND the finale THAT'S GONNA BE A WHOLE LOTTA WORDS I MIGHT WRITE IT IN TWO PARTS**

* * *

As the heroes hopped onto the zap platform that day, they noticed Karen the Bear was holding a bowl and shoved food into her mouth with a spoon. Penn stared. "Karen! You're eating Choco Trunks? And-and you're a bear?"

Karen only growled and ate more.

"Don't discriminate," Verge huffed.

"Huh," Penn stared at Karen again. "Look at you."

"And Derek!" Sashi said. "You're eating Flaming-Os?"

The robot at Karen's left was somehow managing to eat his own bowl of cereal, and his robot faced looked happy about that. "This food appears to be delicious. I wish I had a soul." Verge quickly flew over and patted his head.

Penn looked up at Phyllis, putting his hands on his hips as he smiled. "Oh, hey! Does all this cereal mean we're going back to cereal world?"

Phyllis, who had her own bowl of unidentifiable cereal, pressed the button to zap them in as she said, "Is true, Sherlock."

As they were lifted up, Verge crossed her arms and muttered, "We keep going to the same worlds from before."

* * *

Once they were in the world, Verge did a little flip, feeling quite happy to be in her cereal-mascot size. She flew above her friends, only noticing that they were in front of a jailhouse. She shuddered mid-flip as she heard the bell ringing. Penn as Choco Chuck looked at Sashi and said, "Hey Sash? You wanna, checky Specky?"

The Agent Flamingo did. "Alright. Wrong Way Wally and Otis the Opossum just broke out of prison! Our mission is to capture before they rob a train filled with Choco Trunks headed for the Crispy Valley Toucan Orphan Festival!"

"Alright gang, listen up!" Penn suddenly said, as Verge fluttered to stand to beside him. "I want an elaborate search party. We're gonna check every bran house, every wheat house, granola house, honey gram house, every out house—I mean oat house, basically all houses we're checking _and we won't stop until these guys are behind bars!"_

"Getting in character deep, huh?"

"I kinda like this."

Verge rolled her eyes and pointed at the ground. "Looks like we got our first clue."

Boone, who was inspecting the rut with a magnifying glass, reported "It looks like they're dragging something."

"Only one thing makes tracks like that," Penn proclaimed. "A giant milk bottle! _Duh duh duuuuh!" _The way he sang it made it seem like they were actually on an actual crime film.

Verge sighed again, ignoring him. "So, Rippen and Larry are with the Milkman." As soon as she said Milkman, she used her protection magic, and surrounded herself with a protection shield ball.

"What are you doing, Verge?" Sashi said, raising an eyebrow.

"I'm not letting him get me wet with milk again! Might as well keep this protection shield up just in case."

"But we're not gonna find him for a while," Boone protested. "You should save your energy."

"I'll see…"

"Let's start following this rut trail now!" Penn said, clapping his hands. "Let's hop to it, guys!"

Verge and Sashi ran into the jail house and came out with three marshmallow mutts that served as the jailhouse's hound dogs. Verge had them all before Penn and Boone took their own mutts by the leash. As soon as they had their hounds, they let them bark and follow the trail.

The dogs were so strong and fast, they practically carried the three away. Verge flew above them, following the dogs. At one point, the dogs stopped running and sniffed at the road. "These marshmallow dogs have the scent."

Boone couldn't help it. He lifted his blue marshmallow dog, saying "Good boy!" before chomping down on its tail. "Mmm…really good, actually!"

"Not cool, Boone!" Penn scolded. "…Share the dog." Penn also took a bite of the blue dog's butt.

Verge knocked them both on the head. "Ow!" Boone and Penn complained.

"Oh, hush, it wasn't that hard! And how could you do that to those poor dogs!"

"They'll be fine," Penn said with his mouth full. Verge grumbled something about being an idiot. "Go get 'em!"

The four let the dogs loose, and the marshmallow mutts continued running off.

They were way too fast that this time, the dogs were too far away to keep up. Verge had to fly higher in order to see them. She was delighted when she saw the three villains being chased by the dogs, but watched in horror as the spooky forest they'd run into terrified the dogs, making them lose the fugitives' trail. The fairy groaned and flew back down, patting the three dogs as they whimpered in fear.

Penn, Boone, and Sashi ran up to them, with Penn asking "What happened?"

"Rippen, Larry, and the Milkman ran into Spooky, Super Dangerous, Multigrain Marsh," Verge reported. "We can't go there by foot now."

"Great. Now what?"

Verge stood up from the dogs and smirked. "Leave that to Divergent." She flew to the skies again and headed for the direction of the jailhouse.

A couple of moments later, Verge came back driving a loud helicopter with spoons instead of blades that hovered above the heroes. Penn gaped at the vehicle.

"How did she—" Sashi nudged him, grinning. Penn blinked, smiling as well. "Right."

Verge parked the helicopter by them, still in the driver's seat as she said "Ta-da!"

Her three friends slipped in, with Sashi taking the driver's seat now. "Why couldn't we just get dusted again?" Boone asked.

The fairy shrugged. "I like helicopters."

They took off into the sky, ready to chase after the fugitives again.

When Verge came, the sun was already setting, and it only took a couple of minutes for the gang to completely cross the Marsh. By the time they did, it was dark, and Verge switched on the helicopter's light, letting it shine down on the fields in hopes of searching for the fugitives. She also flew beside the vehicle, the golden glow from her wings serving as a light source for Sashi to see better before her. Penn and Boone continued to chew on the marshmallow dogs.

Verge _thought _she saw the fugitives at a house in the middle of the fields, but she apparently was just seeing things, since no one was there. She and Sashi continued searching.

By the time all the dogs were gone, Sashi had gotten tired of driving the helicopter and verge was tired of flying. "Let's rest for the night," the flamingo announced. "We can do better at searching for them tomorrow."

"Good idea," Penn sighed. Verge gave a thumbs up and searched for a good place in the fields to park.

The helicopter landed at an empty patch of land, perfect for the heroes to stay in for the night. Everyone gathered inside the helicopter, and it didn't take long for Penn and Boone to pass out completely. Sashi scoffed at them, muttering something about not taking the mission seriously.

"Wish I could take some of these giant cereals back home," Verge chuckled.

"To Middleburg?" Sashi asked. "We could always buy a ton of boxes. And have a cereal-eating race!"

"Well, that does sound fun, but I mean Fairy World! My people would love to know about this place. Around one cereal piece could feed about five fairies!"

Somehow, Sashi frowned a bit. Okay, maybe Verge wasn't showing her friends that she was going to Fairy World as much, and it was clear she was trying her best not to be late, but it didn't stop the fact that Verge was still mentioning her old/new home. Sashi, Penn, and Boone all agreed that they had feared that one day, their fairy friend would like to stay in Fairy World forever, instead of continuing their part-time jobs with them. As much as the three loved Verge and wanted her happy, they were still afraid things would change a lot.

"You're starting to sound like a true fairy princess," Sashi tried joking.

Verge laughed at this. "Shut up."

The flamingo laughed as well. But inside, she was worried about what she'd said.

* * *

The next morning, they had to go back to the jailhouse to make a proper plan, since there were reports from Uncle Beardy saying the fugitives went down a certain train. In the headquarters, Penn and Boone just seemed to keep on eating, while Sashi and Verge practically slaved over the map of railroads, wondering about where the villains could possibly be. Boone's stomach barked, and he patted it, saying "Good boy."

"I don't get it," Penn said, chewing. "Why are they heading that way when the train with the Choco Trunks is heading in the opposite direction?"

"Hm," Sashi mused. Boone's stomach barked again, expanding long enough for it to knock over the carton of milk on the table, spilling its contents over the papers. "Boone!"

"Bad boy," the beaver scolded at his stomach.

Verge quickly picked the carton up, but froze when she saw who was on the cover. "Wait a minute…no…"

Penn blinked before his eyes widened, standing as he stared at the pictures on the table. They were labeled "Lower valley" and "Crispy Valley Milk Dam". "Yeah…good boy…_very_ good boy…" He turned to Sashi and Boone. "Get me the Milkman's file. I think our mission just changed…_duh duh duuuuh!"_

"Stop it."

"No."

The four were back on the helicopter later on with Penn driving. They headed straight for the Crispy Valley Milk Dam as fast as they could. As they hovered over the fields, Penn frowned. "Funny, I don't remember there being a train track last time," Penn mused.

The four gasped as they watched the train Rippen and Larry were on move at maximum speed, heading straight for the dam…

Until it crashed right into it.

A whole tore through the dam, and everything came apart, as the milk began to flood the fields, overtaking the crops and began to soak all the cereals up. "Help Rippen and Larry!" Verge cried.

Penn flew the helicopter down closer, and just before the milk touched the part-time villains, they managed to grab onto the helicopter's landing skids and be lifted into the air, away from the flood. They couldn't stop there though.

"We've gotta build a new dam to stop that milk!" Penn shouted. "Boone, you're up!"

The beaver opened the helicopter door and hopped into a bush of Kale Flakes. He began eating, until his beaver body grew buffer, and he began to build the dam they needed by using chunks from the valley rocks. Penn lowered the helicopter, making sure he and everyone else were placed safely away from the flood.

But then Boone hopped in, grabbing Rippen. "'Scuse me! I'm gonna need this!"

He hopped back to the dam and put Rippen in the last hole, which was conveniently shaped to fit him perfectly. When the milk came, the dam managed to stop all the milk from overflowing to the other fields, and the rest of the valley was safe and dry.

"Nice one!" Verge cheered, pumping her fist. But then she saw the Milkman and yelled, "Oh no!"

The Milkman hopped into the vast milky flood, and soaked it all up. It seemed like déjà vu, because the Milkman began to grow bigger from each drop of milk he soaked up. Once he was big enough, he grinned evilly and began to stomp towards the dam, ready to break it.

"Get back in, get back in!" Sashi had cried. They all hopped into the helicopter, and Boone jumped up, hanging on to the landing skids.

"Darn nice dam, friend," the Milkman boomed. "I'm gonna break it!"

"Hey, that sounds like Wreck-it Ralph—" Verge started.

Penn pressed a button on the helicopter and a toaster appeared underneath. It shot out four pieces of toast, but they all just phased right through the Milkman. The helicopter, however, didn't phase through when the Milkman hit the heroes to the ground. "Swap, friend!"

The vehicle broke, and the hang fell out of it. Verge and Sashi both groaned. "I knew we should've used English muffins," Penn mumbled.

Verge lifted her head, watched as the Milkman stomped towards the dam. She gasped and quickly pulled her friends closer to her before conjuring another protection shield.

"What are you doing?" Boone questioned.

"We might as well make sure we don't get stepped on!"

"What?" Penn frowned. "No, Verge, we have to do something!"

"Zero, look!"

A mini-tornado suddenly appeared out of nowhere, and just when the Milkman was about to step on Rippen, the tornado swallowed the Milkman right up. "What the friend is going on?!" he exclaimed. "Ah, I'm churning friends!"

As the tornado died down, the heroes realized it was actually Larry – as Otis – high on Banana Bran. And where the Milkman once was now lay a giant stick of butter.

Verge lowered the shield, and Penn approached Larry and the butter stick. "You're under arrest, Milkman—ah. Butterman? Is that what I should be calling you? Mr. Butterman? Mr. Buttermun?"

"It doesn't really matter, friend," Butterman said sadly.

"Now with new beard cinnamon flavor!" Uncle Beardy somehow appeared, sprinkling cinnamon on the butter stick, while chuckling to himself.

* * *

Once the villains were now back in jail, the heroes could zap back home, and once Penn did, he collapsed on the couch. "Whew!" he sighed happily. "I'm full from all that cereal."

Verge was chuckling as she came from the kitchen, holding a box of Choco Trunks, two bowls, and two spoons. "Care for more, though?"

"You bet!" Penn smiled, sitting properly and making room for her. She sat and placed the bowls down, and Penn poured the cereals in. Verge stood up again abruptly. "Oh! Forgot the milk!"

She ran back to the kitchen, grabbed a carton from the fridge, and Penn just chuckled. She poured the milk in the cereals, set it down, and she and Penn held their bowls up together, clinking them before they took a spoonful into their mouths.

"So good," Penn hummed, leaning back. "Cereal for dinner's the best."

Verge chuckled. She then checked the clock on the wall and suddenly shook the box of Choco Trunks. "There's still some left," she noted. "Mind if I take some back to Fairy World?"

The redhead shrugged. "Meh, go ahead."

"Awesome!" Verge brought her MUHU out and twisted it, making it the MUT.

At this, Penn sat up straight. "You're going now? We just got home."

"The cereal's gonna go bad soon!"

"Not true, cereals don't go bad quickly."

"Well, what if Uncle Chuck or Aunt Rose or even the Chinchilla eats some tomorrow?"

"Then we can always buy more?"

"Pleeeease, Zero?" She knew Penn could never resist the looks she gave him that begged for his permission.

The boy rolled his eyes and laughed. "Fiiiine, whatever. Hurry back, okay?"

"Okay!" Verge chirped, holding up the box of remaining cereal. With one press of her MUT, she was gone.

And Penn could now frown as he began to wait for her. He unconsciously skimmed the surface of his cereal, diving deep into his own thoughts.

* * *

**THE LAST MOUNTAIN BEAST IS ACTUALLY NEXT LOL LORD GIVE ME STRENGTH**


	16. The Last Mountain Beast

**Episode 14: The Last Mountain Beast**

* * *

**AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA STAR VS THE FORCES OF EVIL HAS OFFICIALLY ENDED AND I AM NOT OKKKKKKKKKKK**

**Please give me a moment to mini-rant. I've been a fan of SVTFOE since the very beginning, I don't remember how but I do remember I was in love from the very start. I shipped Starco all the way and I'm so happy for Star and Marco now 3 I remember when Season 1 ended right when I finished the story of my first Penn Zero fic. I wish I could've finished **_**this**_** story when the show ended, but oh well. It doesn't stop the fact that I really love the show so much until now (and Penn Zero too of course hehe). I might be a bit unsatisfied with the finale, but it's alright! Some things have been resolved and I'm still crying until now : (**

**I'm gonna be drawing the OCs for the special episode (which, I can confirm now, I'll post right after My Mischievous Son!), but I really wanna draw more Starco first! Remember, pls follow me at "beelieverdraws" on IG, "TheNightShades" on deviantArt, and "iamabeeliever" on tumblr to get updated!**

**And noooow for the chapter! Please leave a favourite and a review with your constructive criticism because they keep me motivated to write long-ass chapters like this one ^^ After this chapter, I promise I'm going to re-read all the past chapters I've written and edit them, finally.**

* * *

"I'll be over as soon as I can, Mom and Dad," the fairy princess told her parents as she pressed another bandage on Penn's face. The redhead was grumbling as he scratched at his rashes. They were talking to the King and Queen of Fairy World through the MUHU as Verge was tending to her friend's face. "We just have a…situation. It'll be over quick."

"Alright, sweetheart," Queen Lareon said, who was standing by her husband. "Take your time. Hello, Zero! Hope you feel better soon!"

"Thanks, Your Majesty," Penn sighed.

"If you need better shaving cream, honey dew actually makes a good substitute," King Lauqui chuckled.

Verge waved one last time before they hung up.

"Sorry for keeping you here," Penn mumbled.

"What? Oh Zero, this is gonna be quick," Verge picked up an ointment bottle. "And this is my home too, you're not limiting me."

The redhead gave a tight smile. "Well, you always seem to be there…"

The fairy frowned. "How do you know—"

"Aside from staying there rather than staying at school, you don't think I notice when you try to lie about your whereabouts?" Penn laughed lightly. "Come on. I know you go back to your fairies. I know you too well, Verge."

The brunette fairy couldn't speak. She was guilty as charged, and didn't know what to say. Frankly, she should apologize for lying but she didn't understand. Penn has always made it seem like a big deal, that she was always going there. It had only been a few months since she found her parents, who she hadn't seen for six years. What was his problem?

Suddenly, Penn's own MUHU rang, and he answered it. The image of Brock and Vonnie Zero fighting a fleet of pencil bats appeared.

"Hi, Mom, hi Dad," Penn said.

"Hi Mr. Brock and Mrs. Vonnie," Verge said damply.

The Zero parents waved at Verge but gasped at their son. "Penn, what happened to your face?" Vonnie asked. "Did Rippen attack you?"

"Did Phyllis' bear finally start acting like a bear?!" Brock shouted out as he punched another pencil bat.

"No, uh, nothing like that," Penn replied. "Despite my complete lack of facial hair, Uncle Chuck decided it was time to teach me how to shave. Turns out Uncle Chuck's got a guy who gets him cheap, expired shaving cream."

Brock suddenly looked hurt. "Oh, teaching you how to shave was supposed to be _my _job. You don't get these moments back!" He jabbed a pencil bat at the sky. "You did this to us, Fate! You better hope we never meet! And that goes for you too, Destiny!"

Vonnie went over to place a hand on her husband's shoulder. "Settle down, honey, that attitude's not gonna—" She stopped herself as she saw something behind Penn and Verge. "Penn, what are those?"

"Uh, we have a bake sale at school today," Penn answered. "I wanted to bake cookies but Aunt Rose had other ideas."

"They're Ground Beef cupcakes," Verge said, shuddering.

"That's disgusting!" Vonnie cried.

"Yeah, I got home just in time for this. She asked me to help make them, but as I was, I knew something was completely wrong. Seriously though, it's amazing how so many wrong things just happened in the morning."

"She's gonna ruin our food reputation! And making cupcakes at a bake sale with you? That's supposed to be our thing!"

"Oh, Mrs. Vonnie…"

"Yeah, I'm frustrated too!" Penn got up from his seat and started punching his punching bag with Rippen's face on it violently.

Verge felt tense and flew over to where Sashi and Boone just suddenly appeared. "Hi."

"Hi…" Sashi watched the Zero family take their anger out on other things, and Boone chewed on more Ground Beef cupcakes. He put mustard on before eating more, and Sashi looked revolted. She tried to ignore it though. "Like parents, like son?"

"You can say that again," Verge said, blinking. "Uh, Mr. Brock. Mrs. Vonnie…it's almost time for Penn, Boone, and Sashi to get to school. Shall we call you back later?"

"Alright Vergie!" Brock called out, still punching. "We'll be done with these pencil bats right after that! Hyah!"

The MUHU turned off, and Sashi had to practically tear Penn away from his punching bag. "Come on, PZ! Don't be a drama king."

"I know you're upset, Zero," Verge tried to comfort. "And I know you keep looking at your MUHU from time to time in every dimension we go to, hoping it would turn green."

"Don't start with me," Penn grumped. "At least _you _got your parents back."

"Yeah, after six years, mind you," Verge huffed, crossing her arms. "Can we not? You have school. And I don't wanna fight."

Penn took a deep breath. "You're right. I'm sorry. Go on and have your princess lessons, we'll see you at work." He smiled, and this time Verge could tell it was genuine.

They shared a quick hug – Verge hugged Sashi and Boone as well after – and the three left Penn's room.

Verge began to frown once they were gone. She was bothered at what Penn had said, and decided for herself right then that she needed to stop lying.

She twisted her MUHU to turn into her MUT and went back to Fairy World.

* * *

"Remember at all times that a princess must always be able to attend to her citizens at all times, any time," Queen Lareon walked down the halls of her castle, with her daughter by her side. It showed tapestries of many queens before them, and Verge was in awe of everything.

"How often do we get new queens?" Verge questioned.

"Well, unlike fairies, who are borne from a baby's first laugh, the royal families continue by bloodline. All fairies have accepted that, and must. Which means…"

"Wait…I'm really going to be queen one day?" She looked up at her mother, her blue eyes wide.

The same blue orbs smiled down at her. "A fine fairy queen, I believe."

Hearing her mother believe in her made Verge's heart jump. The two shared a warm hug, but that made Verge think. This world was going to rely on her full attention one day…

"I believe it's time for your, 'part-time job', was it?" Queen Lareon gripped her daughter's shoulders gently.

"Yeah…I wish I could stay a bit more. It was interesting to know about some fairy battle strategies. Or the fact we even used to battle!"

"We still keep them close at heart. Our ancestors have given warning that one day all the worlds will fall and the fairies will have to face the fiercest battle they'll ever have. But, all will survive, supposedly, and peace will be restored. Your father and I have ruled for many years, and we try to be prepared."

"That's good," Verge said, nodding. "I can't wait for the weekend. I'll teach everyone everything I know!"

"Yes, indeed, your time to give your own lessons starts very soon." The Queen ruffled her daughter's head. "Now go, my dear, I'll see you soon."

Verge beamed, brought her MUHU out, planted a kiss on her mother's cheek, and zapped back to the Odyssey.

* * *

She seemed to be just in time because when she entered the theatre, Penn was approaching Phyllis, who strangely enough was giving Karen and Derek baths. "Phyllis, my MUHU isn't working. We've been to a bunch of worlds since you adjusted it to find the shard, and it hasn't found one yet! In the Ghost world, Cereal World, Plant World—"

"Zero, she gets it," Verge deadpanned, pointing at Phyllis who just continued scrubbing Karen.

"Eh, sorry, I got point after first example," the mechanic said. "MUHU will glow green when you're in world with shard." She opened up a container, and brought the first shard out. Coincidentally, Penn's MUHU screen glowed green. "Like, right now. I make this container which block out shard waves – and sometimes hold lunch – to demonstrate point, because there is shard in our world, MUHU glows green. But when you're in world with no shard, it glows blue." She put the blue object away and the MUHU's glow died down. "See?"

At this, Penn let out a deep sigh. "Okay, the MUHU works. Eversible container perfectly demonstrates your point."

"I know you want to rescue parents. _I _want to rescue parents. _Verge _wants to rescue parents. _Sashi _wants to rescue parents. _Boone _wants to rescue parents. _Karen and Derek, even though they are robot and bear, want to rescue parents!"_

"_I care too much," Derek's voice said sadly._

"But multiverse is infinite, so finding shard may take a long time!" Phyllis used a grappling hook to bring her up to her MUT controls and she prepared to zap the heroes. "You must stay focused. Because you have most important part-time job, ever."

As she brought them into the world, Penn gave a quick nod.

* * *

Verge thought her friends looked like moose that could stand on their two legs. She noticed she also looked like a golden moose with golden wings in her usual outfit. She was still in her bigger size so she admired herself for a bit before doing a flip to become smaller.

Boone was also in awe of the world. "Whooooaaa…really makes you feel insignificant," He glanced at their new forms and was smiling. "I mean, look at the craftsmanship that went into our outfits!"

Penn smiled as well. "Okay, while we give Boone a moment, Sashi, might as well go ahead and check your Specs."

"Alright," she said. "We're good citizens of the oldest, most peaceful kingdom on this planet. For centuries, the kingdom was protected by giant Mountain Beasts. But, over the course of many battles, the Mountain Beats were gradually worn down into small Hill Beasts, which were eventually pushed off cliffs. Now—"

"Oh no!/Whoaaaa!" Sashi, Verge, and Boone all spoke at the same time, with Verge concerned for the Hill Beasts and Boone eyeing his hide.

"Look at this backstitching!" Boone chirped, scratching himself.

Sashi ignored him. "Now an evil warrior king wants to conquer the defenceless kingdom with his army! Legend has it that decades ago, one Mountain Beast left, and hid in the wilderness, and that a chosen one will bring it back before the fifth moon is at its peak."

Penn got on all fours and shook his tush. "So I'm the last Mountain Beast?" he joked. He stood when he saw his three friends staring at him. "I'm kidding! I know I'm the chosen one, obviously."

"No, Penn," Boone gasped. "Your MUMU is green!"

The boy also gasped as he glanced down at his belt, seeing his MUHu screen indeed glow the shade of green it did just before they zapped to this world. Verge flew over. Touching it lightly and beaming. "Yes!" she cheered.

"This is amazing!" Penn also cried out. "Both that it's green and that Boone doesn't know it's called at MUHU at this point, but mostly the green part! This calls for a congo line!"

Verge grew bigger, looking confused. "What."

Sashi looked ready to protest as she crossed her arms. "Nope! I don't do—" But she got caught off when Penn grabbed her antler, and was placed in between Verge and Penn.

The happy boy began to sing out. _"~There's a shard in this world! I'm gonna save my pa-rents!~"_

"_~What about the mis-sion?~" _Sashi snarled.

"Yeah yeah of course of course I can do both! I'm known far and wide as a world-class multi-tasker."

"When—"

"Shush, Verge." He pressed his MUHU, and a virtual map was projected out. "Look, we just fly over, get the shard, then focus a hundred percent on finding the last Mountain Beast before the eighth sun sets, baby!"

"It's before the _fifth moon rises," _Sashi pointed out. "The second moon is already rising, and here's the region we're supposed to search for the Mountain Beast—"

"Blahblahblahblahblah," Penn waved off. "Look, you worry too much, okay?"

He and Boone continued to sing, _"~Sashi worries too much! Sashi worries too much!~"_

"_~She's gonna lighten up a lot!~"_

But Sashi wasn't the only one standing in Penn's way. Verge flew before him and Boone, her wings spread out like she usually did to express dominance or defense. "I can't let you do this, Zero," she said in a low voice.

Penn groaned. "Aw, Vergie, not you too."

"Look, I know you want to save your parents. _I _want to—"

"We've been over this, Verge."

"The point is, you can't jeopardize the mission." She hesitated for a second. "How about, I go check around for the shard first? It'll make things quicker."

"But, I was gonna ask you to dust us all so it would be faster. I mean, we _know _where the shard is—"

"Which is exactly why I should get it, and the three of you go look for the Mountain Beast!" Verge protested. "We'll make good time if we do that."

"No, it'll be faster if you dust me, and then I get the shard and go right back to the mission after!"

"Penn, listen to her!" Sashi shouted.

Verge knew she couldn't do what her friend was asking of her. The chosen one needed to find the Mountain Beast, quick. She'd seen the map, she knew where she could possibly find it, Penn just needed to trust her to find the shard herself. But right now, he showed that he wasn't, which kind of hurt. They couldn't flunk the mission, though.

So Verge did the only thing she could think of doing: she flew away as fast as she could.

"Verge!" Penn yelled, trying to run after her, but Sashi grabbed his wrist.

"You have to trust that she can get the shard herself," she insisted.

Penn yanked his arm away. "Look, it's _my _parents' lives that are at stake here!"

"Brock and Vonnie Zero are like her parents too! You of all people know that!" At this, the boy hesitated. "Look, can we just focus on finding the Mountain Beast? Maybe Verge won't take too long."

It took a very long time to convince Penn, but eventually, he let out a short "Okay."

* * *

Verge flew through the mountains, the trees, wondering if she was at the area the shard was yet. She knew Sashi would eventually convince Penn to at least start searching for the Mountain Beast. She just needed to find the shard, at one of the biggest mountains in the land.

She'd already covered some ground on her wings but still she couldn't see the mountain. She flew to other mountains to double check but there was no shard in sight. She began to get frustrated. "I knew I should've asked Phyllis to alter my MUHU too," she mumbled. "Am I going to right way? Is this the right way to the—"

All of a sudden, her MUHU started ringing, and she immediately answered it. "Dad?"

"Hi sweetie," King Lauqui seemed to have a forced smile on his face. "Now, I know I shouldn't bother you while you're at work, but…"

"…Buuut?"

"But the Tinker fairies personally asked you to come check if it was capable to make toilets."

"Seriously? Right now?"

"Yes, just check their blueprints! It won't take ten minutes."

Verge pursed her lips, looking up at the moons. The third moon was already slowly rising. She hoped she could at least make it back in time for the third moon to fully be in the sky by then.

"This really had better be quick Dad!"

Verge hung up, switched her MUHU to her MUT, and went to Fairy World.

* * *

"What's taking her so long?" Penn grumbled. "Shouldn't she be back by now?!"

"She might have a hard time finding the shard," Boone wheezed, crawling on all fours. "Just like I'm having a hard time climbing through these mountains!"

"Argh! This is all the more reason we should go around and help her! Maybe if she just dusted us—"

"Penn, Verge left us because she wanted you to focus on this mission!" Sashi scolded.

"But she knows how much I want this. _You _know how much I miss my parents!"

"Did you ever consider that if the mission fails, the multiverse will be out of balance and there will be no world for your parents to come back to?!"

"Okay, well, did _you _ever consider that Phyllis might be exaggerating about that a little bit?!"

"I _can't _let you take that chance!"

"Well I can't let you stop me from letting me take that chance!"

The two glared at each other.

* * *

"Thanks for helping us, Princess Verge!" a Tinker fairy named Crackle chirped. His friends around him were beaming and high-fiving over the blueprints spread out on their table. "I've been so excited to try out human technology! Now we fairies can have this so-called 'plumbing' all the worlds have been obsessed with!"

This made Verge laugh. "Happy to help! Now if you'll excuse me, I have to get to my _other _duties."

She quickly activated her MUT, and returned to the world her friends were in.

* * *

Once she'd arrived, she quickly looked up at the sky and was horrified. The fourth moon was slowly rising, and she still hadn't found the shard. "Oh, wings!" she cried. "How long was I in Fairy World?!"

She looked around, unsure of where she was now. Maybe her memory wasn't the best. After all, she lost most of her childhood memories. What made her think she could remember the path she was taking to find the shard _and _the path her friends went? Frustrated, Verge scratched at her hair.

"Okay, Verge, keep calm…I'll just explain to Zero that this was impossible to find." Even though earlier this morning she'd promised herself she'd never lie to Penn again…

She flew to the skies, going as high as she could to make sure she saw her friends somewhere below. Thankfully, she did see them, and instantly flew to their direction, but something didn't seem right. Were Penn and Sashi fighting with pugil sticks? And was Boone playing bongos?

When Verge finally arrived, Penn and Sashi looked tired out, and when they were apart for one moment, Verge flew in between, growing bigger as she held her arms out.

"Guys!" she shouted. "What the dust?!"

"Verge!" Penn also yelled out. "What took you so long?!"

"I—I'm sorry! I couldn't find it, but Zero—"

"Ugh! We should've gone with you!" He then glared at Sashi. "I'm done with this! Goodbye, forever!"

As he turned to walk away, the sight only seemed to make Sashi angrier. She threw the remains of her stick before Verge could shout "No!", and Penn got hit, tripped over some vines, and began to fall of the cliff. As much as she understood how much of a jerk Penn had become in the past hour, the fairy still flew after her friend. "Zero!"

Penn hit the side of the land, and Verge grabbed onto the vine with her own vine powers, making sure he was stabilized. Suddenly, the ground began to shake, and Penn shouted out "Sashi!"

The land they were on moved apart until it formed the shape of a giant beast with horns and many legs. It let out a sound that was similar to a cheer, and its voice boomed out, "Chosen one is here! Neat-o!"

"It's the last Mountain Beast! Hey okay this is very good uh, uh," Penn quickly climbed up the vines, taking Verge's hand as she helped him up. "Can you go fast, Last Mountain Beast?"

"Yeaaah faaast!"

"Yea-he-hea! Now we have time to get the shard!"

"But I told you," Verge protested. "I couldn't find it!"

"Because you didn't have the map, dummy! If you had let me fly with you, we could've found it!" This made the fairy look away. "But now we can find it still!" Penn pumped his fists. "Al-right!"

"Allllriiight!" the Last Mountain Beast cheered.

"Allll-riiiiight!"

"Alllriiiiight!" Boone mimicked Penn.

"Allllriiiiiiiight!" The Last Mountain Beast moved its legs happily.

"Okay, we can give it a shot," Sashi gave in. "But let's hurry!"

"Allllriiiiiiiiiighhtttt!" The Beast finally stood up from his resting place and moved towards the direction of the shard.

"Allllrighttt!" Penn and Boone shouted simultaneously.

"Stop it!" Verge shouted as well. "Just, stop it!" She used the vines to fashion a harness for the Mountain Beast, and Boone and Sashi each took one end, controlling it.

"Sweeeet," it was saying.

"Sweeeeet!" Boone mimicked.

They'd gone a few kilometres before Verge tapped Sashi and pointed upwards. The fifth moon was rising slowly. Sashi pointed it out, saying, "Penn, the last moon is rising! We have to turn around now!"

"Are you kidding me, no! There's the shard!" He pointed at a mountain, and Verge could see the distinct glint of the shard's shiny surface beckoning for them to come closer. Penn brought out a telescope and peered through it . "We're so close, Sashi! "

He handed her the telescope and Sashi looked into it. "Wait, that's just a diamond!"

"What?" Penn cried in disbelief, grabbing it back. "No it's not!" He zoomed in on the glint again. Sashi looked at Verge, who was slowly handing her a turtle. "Sashi, you're crazy! Or, you're just distracting me while you knock me out again."

The girl grabbed the turtle and did just that. Penn passed out cold on the Mountain Beast's back. "Bingo."

Verge knelt down and patted Penn's antlers. "Sorry not sorry."

"Back to the city, Last Mountain Beast!"

"Alllll riiiiiiiiiighhhhhht!" They turned the creature around and it began to stomp its way to the kingdom.

Verge thought of the idea of hanging Penn by her vines and positioning him to hang by a log in front of the Mountain Beast. The creature happily followed wherever the chosen one was positioned.

"That's it, you mindless Mountain Beast!" Sashi said, patting it. "Follow the chosen one!"

"Chosen oneee!" it boomed. "Niiiiiceee."

"You're a good Mountain Beast, aren't you?" Verge cooed, nuzzling her head against the Mountain Beast's.

Penn, who was struggling in his restraints, looked furious. "No, don't listen to her Mountain Beast! No nice!"

"Niiiice!"

"No niiiiice!"

"Niiiiice!"

However, by the time they reached the guarded city, Rippen's army and his Grunts were already charging in, flaming arrows flying and the soldiers climbing the wall. Once Penn saw the whole scene, it seemed like something melted in his heart. "Oh no. Those poor people. Sashi, Verge, we have to help them."

The fairy crossed her arms. Sashi was sarcastic as she said, "Oh! Good idea!"

Verge quickly carried Penn back on the Beast's back, but Sashi pointed upwards. "We're not gonna make it. The moon is almost risen!"

"We have to!" Verge cried. "We're almost there!"

"Verge!" Penn suddenly said. "How much did the water fairies teach you so far?"

"Uhh, a lot I guess? Why?"

"The Last Mountain Beast, I have a crazy idea! First, suck up that lake!"

"Oookaaaay!"

"What the dust, Zero?"

"According to the prophecy, if the moon hasn't finished rising, we still have time!"

"Okay, but how does that stop the attack?"

"Last Mountain Beast, careful careful, don't drink it!"

When the Last Mountain Beast finally had his cheeks full of water, Verge got "cuted out". "IT LOOKS SO ADORABLE," she couldn't help yelling.

"Verge! Hey! Stay with me!"

"Sorry, sorry! Too cute."

"Okay, now, shoot the moon!"

The Last Mountain Beast spit out a hit of water out into the sky. As it did this, Penn turned to Verge. "Make sure it's able to reach space!"

"On it!" Verge wasn't sure how much energy she could take, but she used her water powers to fly by the creature's mouth and lengthen the Mountain Beast's shot. The spray of water reached the sky, but Verge was careful for it to not touch the moons. This water was powerful enough for it to knock them out. "Now what!"

"You're doing great! Okay, to the right…now let's take it up a little bit!"

With the strong force of water, the heroes managed to knock the fourth moon into the fifth moon, making it set back down and sparing time for the heroes. "I can't believe that worked!" Penn cheered.

Verge flew back to him, raising her eyebrows. "You got seriously lucky. Okay, Mountain Beast, let's use the remaining water to put out those death boulders!"

They finally made it to the front of the city, where Rippen's army was so much smaller and looked weaker compared to the strength and size of the creature behind them.

"Attack the Mountain Beast!" Rippen demanded.

But one flaming boulder only bounced off its leg and got put out. When the creature opened its mouth, all the water left came pouring out, taking out any fires from the rocks and made the Grunts run away. Rippen looked annoyed.

"Nice, very nice, now they can run!"

Penn laughed heartily. "Alright! Nice job, buddy! Now let's save the city!"

Somehow, there was still some water left in its mouth that the Mountain Beast used to put out the fires that were running wild in the city. Once everything simmered down, everyone began to cheer, especially when the creature stepped on the warrior king that attacked them. The citizens were safe now, but Penn still looked at them like he was guilty.

"Chosen one," one citizen started. "That was totally great saving the day there, man! It's gonna take a lot of, you know, work to build our, you know, city but totally psyched to be alive, man!"

"Thanks, chosen one!" said the child in his arms. "I'm soooo like, happy beyond words to get to live free with my parents. Even though our ancestral guard is like, burned down and all my toys are like, destroyed. Ehe!"

The four heroes were not happy. But Penn looked the saddest of them all. "I'm sorry, everybody. You deserved a better chosen one."

* * *

The four got zapped back home, and a projected screen of Brock and Vonnie was there waiting beside an angry-looking Phyllis. "You were not hero today," she immediately stated. "You put feelings before mission and world."

"This was partly our fault, honey," Vonnie admitted. "We shouldn't have let you see our frustration."

"I know you wanna save us," Brock put in. "But some things are more important."

"I understand that now," Penn said sadly. "I was terrible today. All I can say is…I'm sorry."

He walked out of the theatre without another word.

Boone, Sashi, and Verge exchanged one look before Verge turned smaller and dove into Penn's hair.

He didn't seem to notice until he stepped out and popped her head out. "Zero?"

A bit surprised by her, Penn looked up in both shock and sadness. "Verge?"

"I'm sorry I couldn't get the shard."

"It's okay, Verge…" He gripped the straps of his backpack tighter. "I'm sorry I was a bit hard on you—"

"You okay, PZ?"

Verge hid back in the hair in instinct, but when Penn turned around it was actually only Sashi. He didn't answer her question, but instead started off with, "If you didn't stop me today, all those innocent people would be—"

"But I _did _stop you. Verge did too! Everyone has a bad day."

"No. I can't."

"Yes you can." The brunette suddenly smiled. "I don't know how you've been able to hold it together this long without your parents. I'd be a mess. The truth is, you're stronger than me. You're the strongest person I know."

Penn slowly smiled a bit. "Thanks, Sash. Hey uh, I didn't mean what I said today. You _are _a real friend. The realest."

"And when you need me to bash your face, I'll always be there to waste you."

She leaned in and hugged his waist, to which Penn was surprised, but he inevitably hugged back. It was so warm and nice, you would've thought they were a couple.

In Penn's hair, Verge was frozen.

Until, Boone appeared on his scooter and started singing, for some reason.

_~It's a best friend makeup song_

_This is my solo so don't sing along_

_We should celebrate in Hong Kong_

_That these friends again get along_

_It's a best friend makeup song_

_A best friend makeup song!~_

Once Boone was gone, Sashi punched Penn's arm. He was surprised until they both laughed about it and walked home together.

The redhead seemed to have forgotten about the fairy.

* * *

Once they were home and ready for bed, Penn was sitting on his, holding his MUHU as he stared down at it, and Verge in her little matchbox, wearing her leaf nightgown, her thoughts to herself. Finally, she grew bigger and walked to sit down beside the redhead at the edge of his mattress.

"Okay, can we talk?"

"About what?" Penn looked at her, a small smile on his face. It was clear he was still guilty about earlier, and of course still sad that he didn't get the shard.

"Things have been…different. And, you know it."

"…What do you mean?"

"Well, I've been thinking since this morning."

"That's not good."

"Zero, I know I don't tell your everything—"

"You think?"

"But I'm starting to realize now that, there are things I can keep from you and some things I can't. And most of those things, I can't. Then maybe you wouldn't have some distrust towards me."

This made Penn frown. "Distrust? Verge, I always—"

"Come on, Zero. I know you too." The smile on her face was like a slap to Penn's. She'd noticed it before he did, and he felt instantly stupid to even have this feeling in him. He never once considered not trusting Verge, and he was even more mad at himself for showing it.

He took the fairy's hands now, gentle and genuine. "Verge…I'm so sorry—"

"No, Zero. _I _am. From now on, no more secrets." Verge grew smaller and held her fist out. "I promise."

Penn slowly smiled and knocked it with his finger. "Same here. I promise we won't fight over petty little things, either. I'm sorry I was really harsh. I'm happy you get to be with your family now, Verge. I promise I won't call you out for always going there anymore."

"You mean it?" Verge flew closer to his face, her wings fluttering as fast as her heart beating.

"Yeah," the redhead chuckled. "You deserve getting your family back."

"Well, my family's not completely back yet." Verge was serious as she grew one more time and looked dead into Penn's cyan eyes. "Like you, I won't stop until I get Mr. Brock and Mrs. Vonnie back home."

This made the boy grin widely as they shared a hug.

Suddenly, Penn shouted out as he pulled Verge against the wall by his bed, clearly frightened at his window. A giant eyeball was peering through the glass, and Verge screamed when it tore the window right off the house. But then, when Phyllis' familiar gloved hand poked in, they tried to relax just a bit, especially when she held out a blue shard before them.

"Here you go, smart guy," her voice boomed. "You think Phyllis would let shard get away?"

As the footsteps stomped away, causing the ground to shake, Penn didn't seem to care as he now held in his hands the thing he had risked his mission for. "Thanks giant, terrifying Phyllis!"

"You got it," Verge breathed out. The blue shard's glow eliminated in the darkness, and she and Penn stared down at it in awe.

"I know," Penn said lowly. "Verge?"

"Yeah?"

"We're so close."

* * *

**Holy—this took forever.**

**I really hope you guys like it because it took me 6 hours to write! (you can see why I was reluctant to write this, and im not looking forward to the finale either ;; ) i'M STILL SO PROUD THO? LIKE YAYYY**

**Im still focused on drawing Starco, so don't look forward to the next episode for a while? It's not gonna be that Verge-involved anyway, I think. But again, leave a favorite and a review telling me what you think of this chapter! And pls follow me in the sites I've mentioned in the author's note up there!**

**Submissions for OCs that will be used in the special episode are still open! I have, at most, 2 slots left!**


	17. Ninki Ninja Fight Town

**Episode 15: Ninki Ninja Fight Town**

* * *

**I'm posting this earlier that I expected :D**

* * *

It was a Saturday morning and Penn was walking beside Verge on their way to the Odyssey. She was looking through Penn's phone, browsing through texts for no reason, and looking at the pictures people had sent Penn. "Wow, everyone seemed to have a lot of fun last night."

"Last night?" Penn asked, confused. "What do you mean?"

"Check it," Verge showed his phone and continued to display the photos people sent him. Boone was one of the senders, who seemed to be having fun swinging on a chandelier.

Penn frowned. "What? Where was this?"

"Alex's place!" The two looked to see Boone on Penn's side and Sashi on Verge's left. As soon as the part-time Wiseman saw the phone, he beamed from the memory.

"Wait…Alex's party?" Penn's footsteps suddenly turned into stomps. "This was last night?"

"Dude, Alex's party _was the best!" _Boone chirped. "Remember when I swung from the chandelier and it broke but it was cool 'cause I landed on the indoor bouncy castle?"

The gang entered the Odyssey with Penn still looking annoyed. "No, I uh, I don't remember that because I wasn't invited."

"It's okay, Zero," Verge said. "I wasn't either."

"Because Alex doesn't know you!" The redhead sighed. "Hey Sash, did uh, did you get an invite?"

"Yeah," she replied simply.

"Agh, Alex's parties are legendary. I can't believe he didn't invite me." He held his arm, looking at his friends uncomfortably. "Am I not cool? Are people secretly laughing at me?"

Verge, who was flying above Boone, reached down to pat Penn's shoulder. "Aww Zero—ahh!"

She yelped at what she saw, and Penn also yelped as he looked upwards. Phyllis had a lampshade over her head and was wearing an orange shirt with Alex's face on it. As she took the lampshade off, she revealed her disgruntled, drunken face. "Quiet," she moaned. "Phyllis still recovering from epic party." She punched in the coordinates and began to zap them in. "Ohh good times…"

* * *

"Anime!"

The moment they were zapped in, Verge _knew _there was something up with the dimension, and she knew immediately recognized it to be in anime-style. She examined her new form, which was basically herself but in the dimension's style, and Penn looked at his muscles.

"Alright! Now we're talking!" he whooped. "No one's gonna laugh at the most super ripped ninja warrior!"

"Hey!" The four looked behind them to see they had company. A fat boy, another ripped warrior, and a girl with three pigtails were with them. The other warrior was speaking. "Aren't we all ninja warriors walking this road to the forest together in a super ripped fashion? What makes you think you're the only one, ey? I oughtta make you tell me why today okay that's my opinion."

"You talk funny," Verge muttered blankly, as Penn looked a bit weirded out. The guys did speak as if they were talking too fast for their mouths to catch up.

"Huh?!" the fat boy suddenly said. "If ya'll are gonna be walkin', better make it faster, ya hear? We ain't got time to mosey like cows all day!"

"Haaaah!" the pigtail girl suddenly cried out. "Don't insult all the cows, okay? As you know it hurts the feelings of my poor Mooguchan! And also you, Sparklechum!"

Two creatures popped out of the earrings she touched, and Verge squealed, getting smaller as she went to pat them. "They're so cute!"

"I like your little flying creature!" the girl piped, pointing at Verge.

"She's not a creature," Boone spoke up. "But these guys are awesome!" The shark-like cat and small cow hopped on Boone's old-man shoulders and began licking him. "Ohhh who's a good Sparklechum?"

"You must have a friendly flavor I bet uh-huh uh-huh yes!"

"Uh, why do you guys talk like that?" Penn finally asked.

"To what are you referring?" the black-haired ninja warrior said. "You are the one speaking in an odd manner, that's what I'd say." He and his other two friends began laughing, their faces going all "anime" as tears ran down their cheeks.

Penn's face also turned anime as he looked a bit flustered, but also began to talk fast. "Hahaha I was only joking I actually also talk the way you talk very fast but lots of words too right now Sash do the checking of the Specs for the learning of the mission."

Sashi, who looked like Sailor Moon in Verge's opinion, began to check the Specs. "Supreme Commander Rayota of the Unreasonable Warrior Clan has conquered our island and invited all the best warriors to compete against him in a Ninjutsu tournament. Penn and I are part of the Ninki Ninjas, each with a unique magical fighting power and Boone is the elderly sensei who has gathered us together. Verge, of course, is our fairy-guide as usual, and needs to make sure we all perform well in the tournament. We have to defeat Rayota to win our island back."

"Sounds simple enough," Verge sighed, turning to Penn. "I'm just happy we're in this anime world! Do we get to meet Goku? Or Ash Ketchum? Or is that already these nerds here?"

She gestured to the three additional members to their gang, who seemed to be gawking at Sashi. The pigtail girl's eyes were shining. "Such glasses are special in an unfamiliar manner I've never seen ahahahahahahaha!"

The three were suddenly on the floor, swaying. "Your eyewear is superior at all ways imaginable!" the black-hair boy said.

"I ain't see nothin' like that since the hen house fox don't road sidesaddle to a sunset! Yeehaw!" the fat one gushed.

"Just…what," Verge scratched her head. "This is why I don't watch the English dub."

Penn looked just as confused. "Uh, oh! You like Sashi and her Specs. Cool me too! You know, I actually always tell her to check them."

But the three just ignored him and continued to gush at Sashi. "Ahhh!/Ooooh!/Darn tootin'!"

Suddenly, a giant creature fell before them, and they all gasped when they saw a giant monkey that looked to be like a bus. Everyone gasped, but Verge squealed. "Catbus! Or Monkeybus! My Neighbor Totoro!"

Then, the monkey spoke. "Hurry and climb aboard me, young fighters!" It crouched and an opening on its body grew wider. "Don't squander my time."

As everyone got aboard, the monkey continued to speak as it took off. "As I'd rather be home grazing and reading about history or maybe napping, which happen to be my favorite things I'll have you know by the way."

"Well! This could take a while," Boone announced. The creatures were still on him and he was still having a lot of fun playing with them.

Verge would've joined, but she was mostly concerned about something else. "Zero, are you still bothered?"

The redhead sighed deeply. "Well, honestly, kinda am?"

"What are you worried about?"

"That people don't think I'm good enough! Cool enough. Someone they can be in awe of or inspired by…I dunno."

The fairy smiled and sat on her friend's shoulder, since his now-spiky hair was not an option. "Awww you insecure li'l bean."

"What?"

"Zero, I don't think it matters how people see you, just as long as you can do your job. And I'm sure…uh…" Verge flew behind to the three members. "What are your names again?"

"Arata!"

"Hideo!"

"Yumi!"

Verge flew back. "I'm sure those guys think you're cool!"

"But what if later on, I can't push through? What if I fail the mission and they laugh?"

Verge wasn't able to answer that, since the monkey bus arrived at a small town, and everyone piled out of it. It flew away just as soon as everyone left.

"Them critters love you they sure do, reckon so!" Hideo chirped.

"Sparklechum, sparklechum!"

"Mooguchan, mooguchan!"

"Hey, did you teach them to say their names?" Boone asked Yumi. "Or did you name them after what they say all the time 'cause that's the only thing they say?"

"Boone, please," Verge said, patting Sparklechum. "They're Pokemon."

"What?"

"Nothing."

Yumi frowned. "Uhhh…I cannot remember!"

Everyone suddenly began to laugh. Arata slapped Boone's back.

But Penn was feeling more down. He turned to Sashi. "These guys love you and Boone. Is there something wrong with me?"

The brunette put a hand on his shoulder. "Stop worrying! They'll come around one they can see what you can do."

Suddenly, the ground shook, and a giant, six-legged purple creature jumped in out of nowhere. Yumi gasped, pointing frantically. "The Bubbamonster intrudes!"

Turns out, it was only Larry, who waved a leg. "Hey, Penn, Verge! Sorry I missed you guys at Alex's party."

"Wait, he invited teachers too?" Penn gasped.

"Anyway, Rippen told me to scorch the meat off your bones before you get to the arena. Hey, wanna battle?"

"Pokemon?" Verge echoed.

"I'll handle this!" Penn declared, rushing forward.

He punched, kicked, and karate-chopped at the large Larry creature, but somehow Penn felt more out-of-breath than Larry, who didn't feel hurt in the slightest.

"You got this, Zero!" Verge called out, a bit nervously.

Suddenly, it was as if every bit of Penn's body was oozing out water, and he looked ready to burst. He lifted his arms, his face uncomfortable, as he screamed, _"Body sweat jutsu!"_

The water shot straight out of his armpits, and slammed right into Larry. The force was strong enough to make him smash into a building and break the ground. Verge was whooping loudly, but Penn covered his armpits in disgust.

"Ew! Did I just say 'body sweat jutsu'? _That's _my ninja power?"

He looked behind him when he suddenly saw Arata, Hideo, and Yumi burst out into fits of laughter. They turned into chibis as they laughed even more.

Penn looked even more disturbed but tried to cover it up. "That was ah, haha, that was a joke attack. I was being ironic—"

"Guys, let's head to the arena!" Boone called out, and everyone ran.

An announcer's voice was booming out, as they all entered the stage. _"And now the tournament that will decide whether we live lives of happiness and joy, or everlasting sadness and fear. A challenger will be eliminated if they are knocked out of the circle of victory! Who has the heart of spirit to become the first challenger of Supreme Commander Rayota?! Who?!"_

Rippen as Rayota came out, pumping his metal spatula and knife for hands in the air, grinning with evil.

Arata turned to his two friends. "Yumi, you're Victory's friend. You should go first, okay?"

The pigtail girl stepped forward bravely. She pressed her earrings, and her creatures popped out, ready to tackle Rippen down.

But Rippen had other plans. He conjured up some sliced vegetables and meat, and hurled them at the Sparklechum and Mooguchan. "Away with you, fake animals!"

Yumi's creatures got hit in one blow and blast off into the sky. "Oh no!" Verge took off at once, hoping to catch the creatures.

"_Oooh!" _the announcer boomed. _"Yumi loses pathetically!"_

The girl began to cry and shriek.

Penn looked nervous and looked at Boone. "Uhh I guess it's your turn now."

"_No senseis allowed!"_

"Penn, get in there!" Boone demanded. "Let Rippen taste the salty flavor of defeat!"

Verge came right in, in her bigger form now, handing the creatures to Yumi. "How did you get them back so quickly?!" Yumi gasped.

"I don't tell anyone everything!" Verge smirked. The redhead, meanwhile, was still hesitant, so Verge put a hand on his shoulder. "Zero, come on—"

"Hey pardner!" Hideo called out. "The time is now for a shucks howdy shockwave! Yeee-_haw!" _

Hideo jumped up in the air and slammed his entire fat body into the ground. It was enough to send a large circle of shockwaves to emanate from the force. But Rippen spun his spatula as fast as he could, until it turned into a propeller that blew the shockwave right back at Hideo. It hit him so much that his body slammed right into the arena wall. He was now passed out on the ground.

"_Hideo loses!"_

"Uhh, maybe I should go!" Verge shouted, ready to fly forward.

"_No fairies allowed!"_

"Seriously?! That's a rule?!"

"_Next ninja!"_

Sashi suddenly stepped forward, took the bow out of her hair, and it suddenly turned into a staff. "Glamour Cadet Alteration!" she cried out cutely ("That's not Sashi where is she," Penn whispered. "You're right," Verge replied. "It's Sailor Moon.").

Sashi suddenly began performing this overcomplicated, very long transformation that was accompanied by song and dance. The whole audience was in awe of her new additions, but eventually, everyone began getting bored. The only one who actually was paying attention was Verge, until the announcer called out again.

"_Oh no. The Glamour Cadet used up all her transformation time, and is eliminated!"_

"What?!" Verge yelled, flying upwards, shaking her fist. "She didn't get to do anything! She's also still transforming!"

"_Next ninja!"_

Arata looked mad now. "I call on the power of the fighting spirit that lives within me." He tapped the red cloth around his forehead. "As well as a robotic fighting suit that will make me taller and fight better than I would relying on my own natural abilities _in the name of all that is noble and true!"_

All of a sudden, a big red and white robot suit came flying in and landed before Arata. ("Gundam?" Verge gasped)He leapt into the top of the robot, now in control of it, as he stepped on the ground, making Rippen fly up. With one punch, he knocked the villain back into the ground, where he skidded before lying in pain.

The crowd was cheering and Verge clapped. "That's good, Arata! Keep it up! But look closer at Rippen!"

"What?" Arata called out, as he was practically twenty feet up in the air.

Rippen seemed to be chewing on something he had with him, and as he ate, he began to bloat. Rippen turned into a gigantic pink gush with purple arms and feet (and a human leg sticking out of him), and the crowd was disgusted. Even Rippen himself as he looked into the live cam. "Ew, I'm gross," He paused. "Oh, whatever."

He lunged forward, grabbing Arata's suit by its leg, and knocking it backward. Rippen cracked an egg on his spatula, and yelled out, "Taste my egg yolk wave of doom!"

The egg yolk multiplied a million fold and it hit the robot, making it slam into the arena walls, and out of the victory circle. Verge yelped and washed the yolk off with her water magic, but by then the announcer was already speaking.

"_Arata has been defeated!"_

Arata coughed as his hatch opened up, and Verge carried him out. "Thank you, strong fairy!" he sighed. "I guess I was not a formidable-enough warrior."

"It's fine, Arata," Verge assured. "But now, Zero's our last hope."

"_Last ninja, you're up!"_

Rippen laughed at the tiny ninja that was Penn who stood before him. But Penn looked determined. He raised his armpits, but looked behind when he heard giggling. Arata and Hideo were healed up after Verge helped them a while ago, but now they watched Penn with big grins. This made the redhead hesitate, and Verge was horrified as she noticed this.

The pink villain laughed more. "I will be victorious now!" He shot another wave of egg yolk at Penn.

But luckily, the redhead was quick. _"Body sweat jutsu!" _His sweat wave was stronger than the egg yolk, as it clashed with the yolk and knocked Rippen to the ground.

"Let's go, Zero!" Verge shouted, clapping her hands, but Penn only noticed the three's continuous sounds of laughter beside his fairy friend.

"Aw come on, whose side are you on?" he said, dejected.

"When something is funny to your ear," Arata said. "Laughter is the correct response no matter what, you know?"

"Argh, Zero!" The golden-winged fairy shouted, exasperated now. "You shouldn't let this affect you!"

"But it is!" Penn said, defeated. "I don't know why but—"

"Penn," Boone interrupted, his tone calm and wise. "You can no more make people like you. And I, can't forget this important detail." A bubble appeared by his head, which showed Alex talking to Boone.

"_Boone, no matter what, make sure you invite Penn to my party. And that small girl he keeps bringing around somehow. Got it?"_

"Wait," Penn paused. "Sooo I _was _invited but you just forgot to tell me?"

Verge grabbed Boone by the front of his robes. "Are you kidding me right now?!" she screamed.

The old man only stroked his beard. "Perhaps…yes?"

"_I can't believe you, Wiseman."_

"Please let go."

"_You're dead to me."_

He pulled away from Verge, waving his hands. "But what is important is that you embrace who you are, even if it is really really embarrassing."

"You _forgot to invite us—"_

"I won't forget at the next party, promise!"

Penn was still hesitant, but his thoughts were cut off when Rippen was laughing. "Body sweat? What's your greatest weakness? Deodorant?!"

He and the other three continued to laugh, but Verge flew above the three, slapping them on the heads. "Shut up!" she shouted. "Zero has made more progress than you!"

"Boone is the one who is annoying and right," Penn realized. "And Verge I'm sorry for not listening to you again my time for caring has come to an end." He faced Rippen, determined. "My gross sweat is my weapon. You should deal with it I suggest, sound good?"

He didn't wait for a reply as he raised his armpits yet again. _"Super sweat tsunami slap!"_

The sweat formed a giant hand and began to slap Rippen in the face. It enclosed Rippen around the fist and pushed it forward, until it threw Rippen right out of the arena. Rippen was shouting, "Noooo—I got some in my mouth!" as it flew off.

The crowd began to cheer, and so did Arata, Hideo, and Yumi. "Ha! Yeah! I did it!

But Verge probably cheered the loudest as she grew smaller and hugged Penn's head. "Yea-hea!" she yelled. "You don't need to be a water fairy to control water!"

She and Penn did a quick tiny fist bump. "Thanks, Vergie," the ninja beamed. "All I had to do was stop caring about what those guys thought of me to unleash my true power!"

The three suddenly looked confused. "Huh?" Arata said. "You mean you lost the most important glorious battle 'cause you were so self-conscious about being liked by us?"

"Ahhh! What a shallow ninja!" Yumi waved Penn off.

"And his armpit power is still right disgustin'!" Hideo huffed, waving his hand. "Yippie-kay-I tell you what!"

The three then began to walk away, and the fairy shook a fist. "He wouldn't be so self-conscious if you kept laughing at him!"

Penn pulled her back by the collar of her blue shirt and Penn smiled. "Don't bother, Verge."

Sashi, who was finally done with her transformation, came out of her small pink bubble and rushed forward. "By the magic of the music, you shall be defeateeeee—what happened?"

The redhead smirked and glanced at Boone and Verge. Then he looked somewhere else and winked.

Verge, who was confused, looked at the direction of his vision, and waved her hand. "What are you looking at?"

* * *

Back at home, Verge and Penn were sitting on the couch, crosslegged as they faced each other. "Okay," the fairy said. "We take turns, alright?"

Penn nodded. "Okay…you go first?"

Verge nodded and took a deep breath. "…I'm always worried that I'll be caught by humans one day."

"Ever since that time I tried to run for president, I've been secretly worrying about how people see me."

"I also fear I don't go around your school often, and I feel like I should get out more."

"I worry _everyday _on whether I'll get my parents back or not."

"Zero, I know about that."

"Right, I'll restart. Are they doing alright in the Most Dangerous World Imaginable? I mean, I know they say they got it—"

"I know about that too."

"Right…uh, I feel like people see me as too prideful?"

"You think?" Penn raised an eyebrow. "I'm kidding. I always feel like I won't live up to my parent's expectations."

"My hair's too puffy, my eyes are too close to each other, and my front teeth are too big."

"Awww but I like all those stuff about you."

This made Penn suddenly smile stupidly. "You think so?"

Verge nodded before looking away, a pink hue on her face. Penn cleared his throat. "Well uh, I do think you're a great fairy princess. Surely your parents see that."

The fairy frowned. "But I'm worried constantly about whether I'm doing well enough. I mean, I want my subjects to look forward to being ruled under me." She took another deep sigh. "That's why, I keep going back. I want to learn as much from them as possible. It's bad enough I spent six years away from them…"

Penn tried to look into her blue eyes but she was looking away. So Penn cupped her cheek and made her glance at him. "That's also why, I'm not bothering you about it anymore. I understand completely. I hope you'll see what I see: that you're a great leader, guide, and friend."

Just hearing those words made Verge's heart melt. "Thanks, Zero."

* * *

**I finished this in under 3 hours! That's a record! I'm only a few episodes away from finishing this fic guys!**


	18. My Mischievous Son

**Episode 16: My Mischievous Son**

* * *

**College is making me nervous ;;;;;;;;;**

**Also, this chapter was really hard to figure out. I didn't have any idea on how to fit Verge in this ep, but I tried! I'm just sorry it's super short :'))**

* * *

"And that's how you use swords!"

The fairies "ooohed" as they held their makeshift wooden swords and Verge brandished a toy plastic one from Penn's old toys. She sheathed it and placed her hands on her hips. "That's all for today! Thanks for coming to today's lesson on Human Warfare 101!"

"Thank you for taking the time to teach us, Princess Verge!" a fast-flying fairy said arrogantly. "Can't wait to beat up Terry with this."

"Whoa, whoa!" The golden-winged fairy waved her hands. "Only use the power of the weapon for _self-defense _and _protection. _Offense is a last resort."

"Awww…"

"Well, today was fun, guys! Tomorrow we'll improve your archery." Verge brought her portable MUT out and her subjects waved happily as she zapped away.

* * *

Verge arrived at the Odyssey just as her friends entered through the doors. "How was school guys?" she asked, growing to her human size.

"T'was alright," Boone said, shrugging. "Kinda boring. What'd you do?"

"Teach fairies how to stab a person."

"Nice," Sashi said, winking.

They took their places on the zap platform and Phyllis greeted them from her area. "Hello, children. I need fairy to stay behind for a while longer."

This shocked everyone. "Wait, why?" Penn asked.

"Penn Zero and friends will understand."

Everyone was confused but Verge flew off the platform and stood beside the mechanic.

"Today you will be zapped by a live studio Phyllis." As she flipped the switch, she suddenly began to laugh out loud, much to the kids' confusions.

"What," Penn deadpanned.

But Phyllis continued to laugh, and even the metal Phyllis heads dropped in and began laughing mechanically, red eyes and mouths flashing. Verge yelped and ducked when they'd appeared.

"No, seriously, I don't get it! What's with the laughing?"

But Penn zapped into the world before she could reply. Phyllis took a sip of her coffee and turned to the controls. Verge didn't know how to start as she stepped forward, smiling awkwardly. "So, uh…this is what it's like after you give your farewells before a mission—"

"You are aware how normally I do not inform of mission…however I will make exception."

"Um…" Verge rubbed the back of her head. "Okay, but why?"

"You are knowledgeable of sitcom?"

"Oh yes!" The fairy's blue eyes lit up. "I watched a lot of things whenever Penn was away at school, actually. My favourite show is F.R.I.E.N.D.S." **((A/N: COMMENT IF IT'S YOURS TOO-))**

"This is sitcom world." Phyllis turned back to Verge, pulling up a chair.

The brunette turned to the large MUT and saw the scenes of her friends fulfilling the roles of a sitcom called "My Mischievous Son". The theme song was playing and Verge began to understand. "So like, it has the live studio audience and everything?" She heard the cheering from said audience when Penn entered the house, and how the redhead was confused at where they were. "I get it…if I was there, everyone would be confused. 'Cause it's like I'm a new character, and everyone would be confused."

Phyllis just took a long sip of her coffee. "If fairy were in world, it would confuse the "audience". I could have very easily sent you in as fairy and you would be very useless. Or Phyllis could've sent you in as part of audience, but friends would spend some time of the mission wondering where you are."

"Huh," The fairy blinked. "You thought all that through…"

"Phyllis could have sent you in as a human, but that would require cutting off your wings."

At this, Verge rubbed her arm. "You…you know about that?"

Phyllis shrugged curtly and gestured back to the MUT. Penn and the others were trying to chase little Rippen. "In this world, there is no time for thinking. Every moment passes like scene in real sitcom. There would be no room to talk."

Verge' golden wings dropped a bit. "It's moments like these that…really make me wish I wasn't a fairy…"

Phyllis hesitated. "Fairy's feelings were considered. It would have been easy to send as a fairy and let you figure out for yourself on how you'll survive mission." She paused. "However, Phyllis has given opportunity for Verge to stay here, and speak to friends through microchip." Phyllis held out a small microphone, and Verge took it.

"Microchip? You mean, like, an earpiece of sorts? When did you have time—"

"Naturally, Phyllis put them in ear while everyone slept."

"Phyllis, what the dust."

"Do your job, part-time fairy." It sounded like a command, but Verge knew it wasn't. It was a calling.

She nodded, grinning at Phyllis, and looked at the MUT. By then, Mrs. Wright was speaking. "Don't worry, sweetie—"

"Zero! Can you hear me?" Verge saw his eyes widen and about to open his mouth. "Zero, don't answer me. Just as long as you can hear me."

"And you three better get this place cleaned up!"

"It's very important that even when others are talking, you can hear my voice. You have to get Mrs. Wright to listen to you."

As soon as the woman left, Penn conveyed her message. "Well, looks like we'll have to get Mrs. Wright on or side."

Sashi's phone rang and she picked it up. "What?! Brandon got back together with _Jaimie?!"_ When the audience gasped, she threw it at them, and everyone gasped.

Verge tapped the railing. "How do I talk to Sa—" She cut herself off when Phyllis jabbed another microphone at her. "Oh thanks…" She then spoke into it. "Sash? Sash, if you can hear me, don't answer, just bite your lip."

At that moment, Larry pranced right in, dancing and hyping up the audience. Everyone was distracted at him, but Sashi was the only one who bit her lip.

"Ha! Sweet!" Verge pumped her fist and turned to Phyllis. "Where's Boone's?"

"Does part-time Wiseman need one?"

Verge opened her mouth and closed it, before turning back to the MUT. "Maybe we'll see—Anyway, Zero—"

"Now don't mind me while I help myself—," Larry was saying.

"Zero, the next scene will happen soon. You have to find a way to catch on camera how misbehaved Max is and show the footage Mrs. Wright. Take a dip in the pool or something, just make sure Sash and Boone get evidence."

"Now _that _is a quality catchphrase," Boone was saying.

Penn looked down at Boone, his eyebrows raised. Verge counted that as a sign that he understood.

Verge watched as even with tricking-Max-into-putting-piranhas-in-the-pool scam, Mrs. Wright was simply too pure. She refused to send Max off to military school, and told the three that Max was a good boy deep down. _She _was the one who convinced Penn to take Sashi and Boone away, so they had some minutes with no screen time. The woman had kissed Penn's cheek, and something in Verge's heart felt hot when he'd blushed.

"Ugh, she's one of those characters that's too blind to see the truth," The fairy grumbled, rolling her eyes.

Phyllis, who was now flipping through a magazine, didn't even look up when she said, "You're just jealous."

Verge nearly jumped out of her seat. "Jealous? O-of what? I'm not—"

"Of how persuasive she is." The mechanic looked up. "Penn hardly listens to fairy guide."

Verge then laughed nervously. Right. Phyllis couldn't be that observant… "Y-yeah, you're right…" She looked back to the MUT. "Will I get to see Rippen's tricks?"

"Too easy. _You_ will talk to Penn Zero."

Verge took the mic for her friend and spoke. "Zero, you're off-screen. You can talk now."

The fairy watched as Penn, who was at a store with Boone and Sashi, put a hand to his ear in shock. "Verge! Great! You're here!"

"Not really. I'm still back at home."

"What? Then how are you—"

"Phyllis put a microchip in your ear while you were sleeping."

"_Phyllis!"_

"Is that Verge?" Boone gasped, as he and Sashi walked closer to him. "Is she in your ear? Bring her out!"

"Yes—I mean yes and no. She's talking to me through some sort of microchip in my head."

"I heard Verge's voice earlier too!" Sashi exclaimed. "Does that mean there's a microchip in _my _head?!" The blonde started clawing at her ear.

Phyllis handed Verge another mic, which she had to assume would help Boone. Verge spoke into all three at once. "Guys, Rippen has some big tricks up ahead. I can't watch the sitcom though. You just have to be careful."

"Sorry you can't be here, Verge," Penn said sadly.

"We can do this, though," Sashi promised. "Don't worry."

The next thing they knew, they were back at home and Penn was tending to Rippen. Verge was shocked when Larry came in, offered a fake hand, and the hand hit Mr. Flanagan. When Rippen took his jacket, Verge instantly hissed in Boone and Sashi's ears, _"_Don't let him get it!"

The moment the jacket left his hands as Rippen threw it into the fire, Boone leapt and grabbed it. "Ooh, something smells delicious!" Mr. Flanagan commented.

Boone was patting the fire off the jacket sleeve as he said, "Well it's certainly not burning coat!" He gave his character's signature snort and Verge rolled her eyes.

As everyone sat at the table, Penn clinked his glass. "Mr. Flanagan, it is a true honor to have you at our dinner table."

Just when Verge noticed the whoopee cushion, she didn't have time to tell Penn. He sat down and the cushion gave a long and loud fart noise. Penn gasped out, embarrassed, and Rippen laughed evilly. "I am _so _sorry, Mr. Flanagan."

The man just cupped his hand over his ear. "What? My hearing aid's been going in and out. I didn't hear any sound for the past fifteen seconds!"

"Oh, come on!" Rippen complained.

"Alright, you were lucky, Zero," Verge spoke into his mic. "But check your surroundings next ti—"

She was late yet again. When Penn ate some salad, he'd put some sauce on it but it turned out to be hot sauce! Penn was in a frenzy, his mouth on fire, and quickly stopped his boss from eating his salad by slapping the fork off. Thanks to Larry's dairy products, Penn was able to calm down for a quick moment but not until he noticed his turkey was all burnt up. The audience gasped, and Penn exclaimed, "I need more turkey! Fast!"

"Go buy some!" Verge exclaimed, as the scene passed by before her. "If that fails…go get a different meat as a substitute!"

Sure enough, Turkey Town was closed, but Penn followed Verge's advice and got lots of tacos at Trudy's Tacos. He scraped all the meat off the taco shells and formed it in the shape of a turkey. It didn't look legit, but it was the only thing he could do. "Not that bad a job for fifteen seconds!"

"No breaking the fourth wall, Zero," Verge muttered, as Penn served the turkey. "But good job."

Everyone got to eat, and Mr. Flanagan looked more than satisfied. That is, just before he was about to give Penn the promotion, Mrs. Wright served the cake.

"This cake tastes like toothpaste!" he exclaimed.

Rippen's laugh sounded out. "Fire in the hole!"

Verge shouted, "No!" as Rippen pressed a button, and the whole cake exploded in their faces. The fairy stared in horror, and everyone was in shock as well. Mr. Flanagan was the first to recover as he wiped the toothpaste off his face.

"Pack warmly, Wright. _You're _going to Antarctica!"

"Yes! I've won!" Rippen exclaimed. "I've finally won!"

"Zero, I'm sorry…" was all Verge could say.

But Mrs. Wright began to tear up. "I'm sorry, dear. This is all my fault. I loved Max as hard as I could, but it wasn't enough." She sniffed and covered her face. "I'm a failure as a mother."

Verge couldn't help saying "Awww" and Penn looked like he almost called her out on it.

Rippen suddenly sighed. "Mr. Flanagan, wait." Everyone gasped as he stepped onto the dinner table. "I'm sorry for misbehaving. And for planting a bomb in the cake. It's not Mrs. Wright's fault. You see, growing up my mother never showed me any kindness. But now, decades later, getting a brief glimpse of unconditional love, I can't help but feel bad about what I've done."

"How is no one questioning this?! Rippen can break so many layers of walls and if I become a fairy there—"

"Hush, it's good scene," Phyllis scolded.

"Mrs. Wright, or 'Mother' as I've come to know her," Rippen continued. "is a wonderful person who doesn't deserve to be disappointed. So I hope you can accept my most sincere apology."

The audience "awww"ed, and Verge almost teared up.

"Any man who has a son who can apologize like that," Mr. Flanagan spoke up. "is a man I want in a management position, _not _in Antarctica." The man then shook Penn's hand. "Wright, the promotion is yours!"

"What?!" Rippen burst out. "I just wanted to make her feel better not get him promoted!"

Mrs. Wright plucked Rippen off the dinner table and gave him a big hug. "I knew you could be good!"

"I'm not good! I'm a criminal mastermind!"

"And I couldn't love you more." Mrs. Wright planted a big kiss on Rippen's cheek.

"…I love you too Mummy." The audience – and Verge again – said their "awww"s.

"By the stars, who knew Rippen had this side in him?" Verge laughed lightly. "We were…super lucky today…"

"Brandon wants to ask _me _to the prom?!" Sashi and everyone else froze as she jumped up midair, and the credits came up. Verge laughed and gripped the railings tight.

"That…was a good episode."

Phyllis had stood from her seat and flipped the switches, zapping Penn, Boone, and Sashi back home. Verge instantly flew towards them. "Good job, guys!" she cheered. "I'm so glad it all worked out—"

"It would've been better if you were around."

Everyone, including Phyllis, was shocked when Penn said that. Boone and Sashi looked like they wanted to step back when the redhead stepped forward. The expression on his face was difficult to read, and Verge looked like she wanted to shrink to her fairy size. "Zero, I couldn't zap there. Phyllis explained it, I wouldn't have been able to fit in as a fairy, and it would be weird if I just appeared as a new character."

"You were barely around." The tone in his voice sounded frustrated, but he also sounded…hurt? "We only got some guidance from you but if Rippen wasn't so soft today, we could've lost! We needed you!"

"Look, I'm _sorry! _You can't expect me, a fairy, to be in absolutely every mission! You _know _there are few dimensions I can be in, and I tried the best I could to—"

"Well, it wasn't enough!" Penn snapped, and everyone was shocked yet again. "Sorry, Verge, sorry, it's just…if only you were human, you know?"

At this, Verge became completely frozen. "…What did you say?"

Penn laughed lightly. "You know, that would've solved some things a long time before! If you were human! You wouldn't have had to worry about the parents you lost, you could've been normal, you could stay here in Middleburg, if only there was a way to turn you into a human so everything could be normal forever—"

"You said _you understood!" _It was Verge's turn to burst out, and the three that faced her could see the fury in her eyes. Her eyes were usually ice blue but now they looked like they were burning with anger. She jabbed a finger at Penn. "You said I was perfect the way I was…do you mean to say you've been hiding up these kinds of feelings for a long time now? Was everything you said about me a lie?"

"Verge—" Sashi started.

"How could you even _think _that there was a way to turn me into a human?! Why—why would you _say _that?! I love being a fairy! I love my parents, I love my subjects! I wouldn't give them up for _anything!"_

She didn't realize she was flying too high. The fairy was hovering about Penn, her face inches before his, and she backed up when he'd noticed the fear in his cyan eyes. No, it wasn't fear. It was guilt.

"Verge…" he began. "I'm sorry, I…I don't always think this, I spoke out of line, but of course I love you the way you are, I always have, I always will—"

"How can I believe anything you say anymore?"

Hearing these words was like an arrow to Penn's heart.

The fairy whirled around and used her fast-flying talent to fly out of the theatre. "Verge!" Boone had tried to call out. But she was already gone.

"Give her time to cool off," Phyllis called from above. "However, if I were Verge, it could take a while."

Penn's heart felt like it shattered into a million pieces in his chest.

* * *

That night, Verge slept on the roof. As uncomfortable as it was, it was better than being with Penn right now.

The redhead had his bed but couldn't seem to get any sleep. He gripped his pillow, stared at the fairy's empty matchbox bed, and replayed their conversation in his head.

"_If only there was a way to turn you into a human so everything could be normal forever—"_

"_You said _you understood! _How could you even think that there was a way to turn me into a human?! How can I believe anything you say anymore?"_

Penn tried not to cry, but he still couldn't help feeling undeniably terrible.

* * *

**IT WILL PROBABLY BE A WHILE UNTIL A POST THE SPECIAL EPISODE WHOOPS SORRY FOR THIS KINDA CLIFFHANGER**

**But I hope you guys liked it, pls leave a favourite and a like to keep me motivated! Follow me on the said accounts I mentioned in past chapters to be updated on the OCs that will be featured in this next chap :D (I included one of mine, and people can still submit btw-)**

**Also, pls wish me luck I have an interview for reconsideration at my dream college this Monday-**


	19. The Art Club

**Special Episode: The Art Club**

* * *

**I DIDN'T HAVE INTERNET I'M SO SORRY THIS WAS POSTED LATE**

**BUT  
I'M  
FINALLY  
DONE  
WITH  
THIS**

**Once again! Thank you to the three people that submitted their OCs for this special chapter! All OC rights belong to them! Credits can be found at the end of this chapter ^^**

**If you guys wanna see how I draw them, look for me at TheNightShades on deviantart, beelieverdraws on Instagram, and iamabeeliever on tumblr!**

**I actually just celebrated my 19****th**** birthday recently but here's my gift to you ****)**

* * *

The school bell rang, signaling the beginning of lunch time. Normally, Verge would stay in Penn's hair or bag as she ate with him, Boone, and Sashi, but this time, she'd hopped out of Penn's bag, grew bigger, and slipped her vest on.

"I heard there are some clubs here at Middleburg that go on during lunch period. I wanna check them out."

"Aw, why go to a club when you have the coolest friends around?" Boone swung an arm over her shoulders and jabbed a thumb at himself. "Us!"

Verge slipped away, rolling her eyes. "I know, I just wanna see what else this school has to offer. I mean, might as well try to act like a normal human in the apparently rare times I'm here, right?"

At this, Penn frowned. He knew she was still upset at him for yesterday. This wasn't like the other times they'd argued before. Verge was still recovering from her anger, so the redhead decided it was best to just let her cool down.

"Don't wait up," she continued, already walking away. "Maybe you won't need me on this mission either."

Boone very much disliked tension and looked to Penn for any hope of calling out to her. But he didn't. He nodded curtly and walked away, letting Verge do her thing.

Most people were actually in the cafeteria right now, but some also occupied some classrooms. Verge could see the different clubs that were going on through the little window, and she was in awe of just how many she'd seen. There was the drama club, varsity teams, cheerleading squad, marching band, newspaper club, and more. She'd been through Middleburg Central High so many times, but she didn't actually _know _it. Penn allowed her to wander the school, but he'd also said that as much as possible, she shouldn't (Verge always remembered what he'd told her on the first day at his first school: "I'll let you go around the school, but try to stick by me most of the time, okay?").

Hanging out with Penn and his friends was okay…but Verge wanted more. This was more than what Penn had said, he had opened her eyes as well. Maybe this is why she was spending more time in Fairy World. She knew she had an unlimited number of friends. Now, perhaps this was a good chance for her?

"Hey, you!"

Startled, Verge whirled around to see the school president, Alex, walk up to her. He seemed to be monitoring the halls, and was eyeing her suspiciously. The fairy began to sweat nervously as she tugged at her vest. "Um, hello!"

"Do I know you?" Alex questioned, rubbing his chin as he looked at her up and down.

"Uh…" Should Verge lie? Should she say she was lost and couldn't find the way to the cafeteria? Should she say she was just about to leave? "I—"

"Oh! Of course I do! You're that girl who's always hanging around with Penn!"

Seriously? Is that how everyone saw her? Shaking off her appalling, she nodded. "Uh, yeah! I come with Zero to school sometimes."

"Huh. You're not really in our classes though…"

"Um…" Verge searched her head for words. "I'm homeschooled! I believe that's a thing."

Alex blinked once, twice, before clapping his hands together. "Well, nice! You must be here at Middleburg to check out if this school has potential?"

"Uh…" Verge could've sworn this was the millionth time she stuttered. "Yes?"

"Well, lucky for you, Middleburg is going to be like your second home!" The school president puffed out his chest proudly. "You should've checked in with Principal Larry though, should I direct you to—"

"No!" The fairy threw herself off and quickly cleared her throat. "No, thanks, he knows I'm here. I'm just, checking out the clubs."

"Ahh, I see! Normally, I'd offer you a spot on student council, but that's not the best club for newbies," Alex waved a hand. "Is there any club that might interest you?"

Verge was unsure. She was pretty sure she'd peeked through all the clubs' rooms already. Though, out of the corner of her eye, her blue orbs gazed upon one room at the end of the hall she didn't notice, and pointed that way.

"Oh, the art club!" Alex exclaimed, quite surprised. "There are only a few people, but I suppose they'll make sure you won't feel so overwhelmed. Go ahead and make yourself comfortable!"

It was clear that he wasn't going anywhere, so Verge had no choice but to smile politely, say "Thanks!", and walk towards that hall. She took a deep breath before she placed her hand on the doorknob. Since it was an art club, surely it would very much appeal to her? She _did _love drawing…

Slowly, she pushed the doors open and took a step inside.

The fairy wasn't sure on what she'd see. A full room? Everyone's eyes on her? Well, sure enough once she stepped inside five pairs of eyes looked up from behind large easels to see who entered the classroom. Verge couldn't see them but she could tell enough that there were five students and not teacher. That is, until a really tall blue-haired male with black glasses stood from his seat and walked over to her.

"Welcome to the Art Club!" he exclaimed, his voice pleasant to the ear. "Have you come to join?"

"Oh, well, I just came to browse…" She nearly squeaked when the guy loomed over her. He was way too tall! Was this the teacher or a student? "...sir…"

"Sir?" The guy laughed. "Call me Cit. Citkat if you want." He winked. "Also, I really love your clothes!"

Verge looked at the same old ripped-edge blue shirt and red skirt and smiled. "Thanks! Made it myself, though I have to admit I could've done bett—"

"Hey, guys, we have new meat!"

"Wait what does that mean—"

The other four students stood up from their seats to approach the two. Verge was amazed at how they all looked so different and yet, they were all gathered in one room. She was also surprised at how few people there were, and they all mostly felt so welcoming. One blue-haired girl, who surprisingly had purple skin and also wore a brown vest, came up to Verge first and took both of her hands in hers.

"It's so nice to have someone join our little circle!" she piped up. "I like your ears!"

Verge had received compliments before but this was unusual. She poked at the pointy tips and smiled awkwardly. "Uh, thanks? I like your…skin!"

The purple-skinned girl sighed. "It's, um, a really bad, permanent sun burn…anyway, I'm Gloria!"

"I'm Lena!" another brunette girl said, raising her hand to wave it. She wore a tie-dye shirt that Verge liked looking at. "It's great to have you here! Haven't I seen you around before?"

Verge sighed. "Let me guess, the girl who's usually hanging around with Penn Zero?"

"Yeah, you! I've seen you around! I was just drawing a portrait of you!" For a brief moment, Verge's eyes widened, wondering why in the heck why. Lena just laughed. "Oh, I hope you don't think that's too weird. I like drawing strangers, and since I've seen you around I thought why not?"

The fairy laughed lightly. "Well, I suppose I'm no stranger anymore?"

"Yes, it's always nice to make new friends," a blonde girl with mid-shoulder length wavy hair agreed. "Hi, I'm Brook." She pointed a thumb to the boy standing behind her. "The wannabe rebel with the long hair is Luke."

The said boy with black shaggy hair glared at the blonde. "Shut up, Brook," He looked at Verge again, his expression cool. "My name's Luke, but everyone calls me Lance."

"I still call him Luke."

"Hello," Verge said, smiling. She got a good look at everyone to view their outfits ("As they say, one's clothes can usually tell a person's personality," Boone once said in a mocking wise voice.) Under Gloria's vest, she wore a red turtleneck top, pink skirt, and white boots that all matched well with her purple skin. Lance wore a black leather jacket, dark jeans and boots, and a dark blue shirt with a skull on it. He really did look wannabe rebel. Lena's shoulder-length brown hair was held back by a grey headband and she wore jeans and purple sneakers. Brook had a white shirt with a heart on it and matching white gloves that were splattered with paint. She also wore jeans and had brown boots to go. Both of them looked to be passionate about art, but Verge would have to see for herself. Cit, the tallest of them all, also seemed to be the most eccentric among the five. Aside from his hair being blue, his hair was shaved at the sides to leave a messy blue mop on top of his heads. He wore a green-blue cardigan underneath a white-and-pink plaid scarf, as well as black-and-white-striped jeans, and blue boots to match his hair. Cit also had bright green eyes and was the only one with slightly brown skin. Verge and Lance were the only ones with blue eyes while Gloria, Lena, and Brook had a variety of different-colored browns. Cit looked like the club leader or president.

"You all look so different!" Verge blurted out, and immediately regretted it. She still couldn't get past her habit of saying things in her head.

This made Lena laugh. "Why be the same as everyone else when you can be weird?"

"I prefer calling us 'unique'," Gloria put in, hands on her hips as she smirked.

"And we all are," Cit agreed. "We show our uniqueness, individuality, and creativity through our beloved works of art!"

"So, is that all you guys do?" Verge questioned. "Draw a pretty picture and call it a day?"

"That's what I asked," Lance said, scoffing a bit.

"But it's actually pretty great here," Brook pointed out. She held her arms out to gesture around the room. "This is the place where we feel at home. It's the place where we get to share our thoughts, opinions, creations through a beautiful form."

The tall, blue-haired male put a hand on his heart. "We gather to express the inner machinations of our minds, the deepest holes in our hearts, the vast seas of our souls."

"During lunchtimes every day and dismissals on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Fridays," Gloria piped in.

"Each of us have our own way of doing art and drawing things to tell our story,"

"Or you know, because we think these things are cool," Lance said shrugging.

"The Theatre club has their theatre and the Dance club have their studio, but we have our paints, pencils, easels—"

"And the occasional dust bunnies that occur in this room since no one has used it in so long!" Lena chirped.

Cit sighed. "It's true, not many come by the room at the end of the hall. That's why I decided to found this club! Not many people appreciate the beauty of art, but these five people are living proof that there are still great minds out there bursting with inspiration and countless ideas!"

"That's wise…and true!" Verge liked the five already. She didn't need to see their art to know they all seemed like great people (even Lance, who looked like he was trying not to care so much, but she could tell he did). Still, she was intrigued to see them work… "How come Rippen hasn't founded this place?"

Gloria huffed and crossed her arms. "He doesn't have as much appreciation for art as we too. Which, is ironic, since he's an art teacher and all…"

"Pfft, who cares about Rippen," Lena waved her hand. _"We're _the ones who really _get _art. I bet any one of us could take a shot at being art teacher if we wanted!"

"Not me," Lance raised his hand. "I mean, art is cool but I can't teach it."

"Honestly, same."

The blue-haired boy smiled. "I realized we never even bothered learning your name."

"R-right!" Verge laughed lightly. "I'm Divergent. But my friends call me Verge!"

"Alright, Divergent!" What a unique name. Do you have your own form of art?"

"Uhh," The brunette fairy hesitated. She just drew whatever she felt like, but she wasn't sure what she drew more often. "I think I draw whatever I usually feel like, actually. I mean, I have a sketchbook—"

"Don't we all?" all five members of the Art Club chuckled.

"I'm the only digi-artist here," Cit said. "But that's how we all started: a sketchbook where we can draw to our heart's content!"

"Why don't you watch us work for a bit?" Lena suggested. "So you can get a grasp of how we art!"

"You're welcome to work with us as well," Brook added. "Lucky for you, we're almost done with our works."

They all scattered about to get their papers and sketchbooks. After a few moments of putting finishing touches, they pulled in some chairs to form a circle. Verge took her own seat and looked to her left to see Lena with her sketchpad. "So, you mentioned something about drawing me?" she joked.

The brunette laughed and revealed her artwork. It was indeed Verge, but the girl's eyes widened at how pretty Lena made her look. It looked very realistic, as if the drawing could come to life at any moment. "It's amazing!"

"Thanks," Lena said, grinning from ear to ear. "I love drawing people. I love practicing different poses, styles, in order to improve my art."

"You could draw portraits one day," Gloria pointed out. "Your works could be put up in museums!"

"Aw, stop," The brunette girl blushed a bit, still smiling. "You all know the same could be said for you guys! Who's next?"

"Me!" Brook said cheerfully. She flipped her canvas to show a beautiful painting of a vast meadow with detailed flowers, plants, and some centaurs. Verge "oohed" at the painting while the rest clapped lightly in satisfaction. "It's very pretty! And meticulous!"

"I love drawing stuff likes these," Brook admitted.

"And she's wonderful at it, too," Cit said admiringly. "The best creature painter we know."

"My dream is to see these creatures one day." Verge resisted the urge to tell her she could.

Gloria, who was seated at Verge's right, suddenly chuckled. "Brook is great at drawing creatures but I know one creature all too well."

The purple-skinned girl revealed her own painting. It looked just as detailed as Brook's, but Gloria had painted what looked like a fairy kingdom. There were lots of fairies in the background and there was even one painting of her with fairy wings. This time, everyone "oohed", except Cit who said, "As wonderful as usual, Gloria!"

"You like fairies?" Saying it out loud made Verge beam.

"Yeah!" If Gloria could blush, it looked like she did since her purple cheeks turned an even darker shade of violet. "Drawing landscapes like this…makes me feel at home…"

"I understand completely." Of course Verge understood. If only she could show Gloria her own drawings of Fairy World. She'd left her sketchbook at home so she couldn't show it to the Art club, but it was a Monday, so for sure she would show them tomorrow.

Gloria smiled at Verge. "Nice to see we agree on something. By the way, Lance, it's your turn."

Lance sighed. "You know I'm not as good as the rest of you guys."

"Now, Lance, we always tell you it doesn't matter!" Cit encouraged. "What matters is how passionate you can be."

"Lance is the newest member to the club," Brook explained.

"And is usually the last to show his work so come on!"

"Ugh, fine."

Lance revealed his artwork to reveal a nicely painted picture of a black motorcycle. It had chains and pictures of skulls and detailed band logos on it. Verge immediately commented, "Wow!"

The black-haired boy shrugged. "I like motorcycles."

"He certainly does," Cit joked.

"And guitars," Lena added.

"It's lovely!" Gloria tried to compliment.

"Will you ever draw anything else?" Brook joked.

"Nope," Lance said curtly. "Now, our club president."

"Best for last I suppose," Cit chuckled, to which everyone shook their heads. The blue-haired male was the only one with a tablet so when he revealed his screen, Verge nearly squealed. Cit had drawn a very detailed and beautiful blue-scaled dragon that had sharp claws and fangs, a long neck, and…black-rimmed glasses on his snout and a potato on its back?

"It's super cute!" Verge cried out.

"I know right?!" Gloria was also gushing.

"I like to think of it as my spirit animal," Cit said peacefully.

"Cit _does _love his potatoes," Lena commented.

"Your artworks are all so nice!" Verge gushed. "How long did it take you to finish these?"

"The whole lunch hour," the club members mused.

Verge was taken aback. "Wow…I wish I could finish a drawing that fast."

Brook wagged her finger. "It's not the speed of the process that matters, but how wonderful the results can be!"

"Some of us worked on these for a long time," Cit admitted. "I started on my dragon yesterday morning!"

"If you stick around a bit more like I did," Lance started. "You'll get the hang of it."

"Will you come back soon, Divergent?" Cit asked.

Five pairs of eyes stared at her. The fairy beamed as she stood from her seat. "Of course I will! But please, call me Verge."

* * *

And so, for the rest of the week, Verge visited the Art club every lunch time. She tried not to go to them at dismissals, since she knew she had work, but she was dying to know more about them. She still wasn't speaking to Penn, she only spoke to Boone and Sashi whenever they were on missions and everyone tried to act like this was completely normal. It bothered her that Penn didn't seem bothered. They hadn't had a fight as bad as Sunday's since forever. But Verge didn't mind now since she had a new set of friends to keep her company. She enjoyed Lena's hyper attitude and her willingness to defend Verge and the art club from anyone that could hurt them. She enjoyed Brook's calming nature and Lance's mysterious yet approachable attitude. Those two seemed to be pretty closer together than the other art club member's but still seemed pretty friendly. Even Lance seemed a bit nice, and offered Verge his colored pencils once as Brook taught Verge how to draw more mythical creatures. Verge found she could relate to Gloria the most, as they both shared a passion in fairies and nature. They seemed to have similar taste in fashion and agreed to swap clothes one day. Cit was the most helpful. He made sure Verge felt right at home and secure by offering her his usual spot, her own paints, and everything she needed to do her own artworks. The club had never asked Verge why she suddenly joined the art club now but they were very open about each of their emotions. They shared their different stories along with their artworks, and Verge enjoyed being exposed to different human lives that weren't Penn's, Boone's, or Sashi's. She truly enjoyed this club's company, and come Saturday, she found herself wanting to skip work.

"We're going to hang out at school as an excuse to have an 'after-school activity'," Cit had said. "You're free to join us if you'd like! We were just going to light a fire in the middle of the classroom and roast s'mores!"

Verge definitely did not want to miss that.

It was a very icy week for the four already, but when they met up and decided to head to the Odyssey, "I'm not going to work today," was all the fairy simply said when.

"What is it Verge?" Boone asked. "A Fairy World emergency?"

"Nope. I'm meeting with a bunch of friends at school today."

"It's a Saturday," Sashi protested.

"You have other friends?" Penn exclaimed.

This earned a glare from Verge. Sashi punched Penn's shoulder ("Ow!") at how inconsiderate his question was. "Sashi, please tell Zero that _yes I do I'm not a loner _and, sorry, I'll get reprimanded by Phyllis the next time we meet and I'm sorry you have no fairy guide to help you today – then again, all Zero wants is a human right?—" This made Penn wince more than when Sashi had hit him. "—but I'd already promised my friends. I can work another day but I can't miss this."

Without another word, Verge flew away.

"Ouch," Boone was the first to speak. "She must still be pretty mad."

And Penn was indeed hurt and guilty. But anger replaced his remorse. "Mad or not she can't just skip work whenever she wants to!" he shouted. "Come on, let's just tell Phyllis _we're _skipping."

"Wait, what—"

"We have to find Verge! Her week-long tantrum ends today!"

* * *

When the fairy arrived at school, she adjusted her vest for the fifth time since her flight to the art club room and was amused to find the art club members already gathering around a large campfire. The fire was being kept alive by what looked like homework papers (that seemed to be mostly generously donated by Lance). Lena was pouring mugs of hot cocoa when she noticed Verge. "You made it!"

The brunette grinned. "'Course I did!"

"Thought you had work?" Brook asked.

"Eh. Decided to skip."

"Nice," Lance smirked, his arms crossed.

"Where was it did you say you worked?" Gloria asked.

"That old rundown theatre, Odyssey."

"That old thing?" Lena scoffed. "What do you do, dust up cobwebs?"

Verge chuckled. "A lot more than you think."

"Heard it takes a team," Cit put in. "Don't Penn Zero, Boone Wiseman, and Sashi Kobayashi work with you?"

At this, the fairy hesitated. "Well…you could say."

"Don't they miss you being around or something?"

"Hmph. Not really, I guess. I've worked with them after school, this is the only day I'm actually skipping."

"I feel touched to know that," Lena sniffed. She handed Verge a mug of cocoa.

Gloria smiled sweetly and handed Verge a marshmallow on a stick. "Glad to have you officially part of the team!"

Verge grinned again as she began roasting. Yes, it did feel nice to know she actually had a different friend group. She looked at the five people in the room that smile and laughed as they just chatted about life together and she knew she felt the same way she did around them when she was around her part-time hero friends. And now that it was confirmed that the art club cared about her as much, her gut seemed to tell her that these people that accepted her deserved to know her more.

"Guys," she stared, and all eyes stared at her as she spoke slowly. "The reason I'm here…the reason I only came to you guys now…I had a fight with Zero recently, and it's a bit hard for me to forgive him."

"Oh," Brook said softly. "May we ask why?"

"It's just…imagine all your life you think that your best friend was more than fine with the way you were, and then all of a sudden he says that he wishes you were different…" The brunette laughed lightly and rubbed her arm. "It's petty, right? I mean, it was just one time he said that, and it was out of frustration…maybe I should've forgiven him? Even if it's kind of hard for me to trust him right now…"

There was a long, cold silence in the air for a while before Lena whispered under her breath, "I'm gonna beat Penn up."

"Lena, no—"

"I can tell how difficult that must be, though," Lance suddenly spoke up, much to everyone's confusion. "To be asked to be different when your whole life, everyone seemed okay with the way you are…" Brook patted his shoulder.

"You shouldn't let it get to you," Gloria insisted. "You _are _perfect the way you are!"

"And whatever Penn said was, like you said, probably just out of frustration," Cit said calmly. "Perhaps you should give him a chance. If he is your best friend, it means he accepts you no matter what. And even if he doesn't, you can't do anything to change that! So embrace it!"

But the thing is, she _could _change herself. The problem is, she didn't want to...yet, a small portion of her being told her she wanted to, for Penn.

"I don't think you can stay mad at your best friend forever, can you?" Brook asked with a smile. "I'm sure things will turn around."

She's right…this entire week, despite Verge being upset, she still felt her fondness and admiration for Penn.

She still loved him.

Verge took a deep breath. "Thank you, everyone…but there are some other things I have to—"

"_We're not letting you skip work, Verge!"_

Everyone whirled to the door and were surprised to find Penn, Boone, and Sashi at the door frame. Boone and Sashi had expressions that said they were embarrassed to be here and of Penn's behaviour, but the redhead had insisted, and was now stomping towards Verge. The fairy stood from her seat and nearly took a step back. But her face looked just as mad as Penn's. The light that burnt from the classroom fire highlighted their anger.

"Are you serious, Zero?!"

"I should be asking you that! Are you seriously ditching work for this?!"

Verge rolled her blue eyes. "It's just one day, Zero! I spend more time with you guys than with my new friends!"

"This is work! And mind you, this isn't the first time you skipped work!"

"One time I was sick!"

"You still missed work the most times out of the four of us!"

Lena leaned towards Brook and whispered, "Is this a lovers' quarrel?"

"_No!" _Penn and Verge shrieked.

Realizing what she'd just said, the brunette took a deep sigh, glared at Penn and crossed her arms. "Why do you even care, Zero? You're not my dad or anything! And I thought you were avoiding me."

"For real?" Penn pointed an accusing finger at her. _"_Okay, one, _you're _the one avoiding _me!"_

"Yet you're not doing anything about it."

"Two, even if I'm not family, I'm your best friend and I do care about you. And three, stop being such a princess and get to work!"

"Okay!" Cit laughed nervously, trying to come up between them, his hands raised. "Let's stop before things get out of hand—"

"I knew it! You're _still_ upset! I knew you couldn't accept that I'm always over there!"

"_I told you I understand!"_

"How can I believe anything you say anymore?!"

"Verge, is this really still about last week?" Penn's tone was getting more and more exasperated. "I already told you I'm sorry! It was a mistake, Verge!"

A million thoughts were running through her head now. Maybe it was a mistake? Maybe she was overreacting? But Penn was always short-tempered. He could say something like that again. He'd spoken his true feelings loud and clear that day. He wanted her to be _human _when she clearly enjoyed being a _fairy. _

He _didn't _accept her. He didn't love her.

"We're really sorry we barged in," Sashi was saying to the art club. "We'll all leave soon—"

"I'm not going anywhere," Verge announced stubbornly.

Penn's temper was rising and he let out a groan of frustration and instantly reached out to grab her arm. "Come on, Verge!"

The fairy only resisted. _"No, Penn!"_

She yanked her arm back too hard. Verge lost her balance and her vest got caught in the fire and everyone gasped as it quickly spread. The fairy's first instinct was to take it off and put it out with her water magic. That was immediately a bad move. Not only did she expose her fairy powers, but her golden wings extended from her back and were free.

Everyone gasped once again. Penn realized what he'd done and his expression turned to horror. "Verge, I—"

"Don't say a word." Once Verge realized her secret was out, she could only think about her new friends were reacting right now. She couldn't even look at their faces. Instead, she chose to glare at Penn.

"Verge—" Cit was the first to speak.

"I'm sorry, everyone. This is who I am."

Without another word, she flew to the window, turned smaller, and flew away, leaving a room full of five shocked people and three horrified ones.

* * *

Verge didn't know where to go from there. She was sitting on the roof of the Zero house, moping, wondering why she and Penn had to make a big scene like that. She hated fighting with Penn, and one of the reasons she was avoiding him was to make sure they didn't have to fight again. But no matter how many days passed and she had her time to cool off with the art club, she still felt her anger towards Penn. She didn't know why his opinion of her meant so much. Now she was on the roof of her second home, feeling sorry for herself, and wondering if her new human friends would even still want to be associated with her. After that big scene and her dramatic exit, she couldn't help thinking how stupid she was. She couldn't go back to Penn and the others, either. She was still just so mad.

The fairy sat, her wings drooped, tears daring to escape from her eyes, as she silently watched the sun begin to set.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?"

Verge nearly fell of the roof when she turned and suddenly saw Gloria. The blue-haired girl carefully moved down to sit beside the fairy. The first thing Verge asked out loud was, "How did you find me?"

Gloria smiled a bit. "Penn had a feeling you'd be here."

"Ah…" Verge nodded slowly. "Why isn't the whole art club up here? Are you the only one that actually accepted me…"

"Well, no. Everyone is very worried about how you're feeling right now. Cit and I thought I should be the one to talk to you."

"Oh…why?"

"Because I'm the one who can relate to you the most."

It was then did Verge realize that Gloria didn't have her bark-colored vest on, and she noticed the translucent, glittering shapes behind Gloria's back. She watched in awe as they fluttered, and then came to an amusing conclusion when she realized her purple skin made so much more sense. "You're a fairy too?"

The purple-skinned girl grinned. "Yep. A fairy princess, like you. Your part-time hero friends explained that you're from Fairy World. I'm from a different world, called Balsa."

Verge couldn't help grinning at the idea of a different fairy dimension, and that she had coincidentally become friends with one of its inhabitants. "That's cool! Why did you come to Middleburg?"

"Well, I sense a strong force of multi-dimensional travel, but I haven't found it until I understood everything Penn had explained. You know, I kinda had a feeling you were a fairy as well in the very beginning. I mean, I know that 'homeschooled' excuse well! And who can understand my sense of fashion better than another fairy?"

The golden-winged fairy giggled. "True…so, I take it the art club knows about you?"

"I tell them everything. I surprisingly found a second home in them, and they were very welcoming. Lance was the only one who was very confused, and he actually still is right now, once he knew you're a fairy!"

"I see," Verge chuckled. "They're alright that I'm a fairy?"

"Of course, Vergie." Gloria nudged the pale-skinned fairy and winked. "Lena and Brook are so excited to see you without the vest. They were very happy when I revealed myself to them." Verge laughed out loud at that. "And, we really understand. _I _understand. Penn was wrong to tell you he wishes you're a human."

"I'm not overreacting, right?" Verge asked. "What he did was wrong?"

"Well, yes, what he did was wrong, but you should also find it in your heart to forgive him. Like Brook said, you can't stay mad at him forever, right?"

Verge thought long and hard, but she already knew her answer. "Right…I'm just so upset. It's like he's making me decide on two hard choices: staying in Fairy World forever or stay with him and be a human forever. At the moment, all I can do is stay here as a fairy and continue to live the life I've lived these past six years."

Gloria hesitated for a long while before she put a hand on Verge's shoulder. "You know, the art club doesn't mind if I'm usually gone. That redhead should know better, actually. I go back and forth from this dimension to mine all the time! I stay there mostly, but I still come back."

"Really?" Verge questioned in disbelief. "You really weren't…limited?"

"No, that's crazy!" Gloria laughed lightly. "I'm really sorry to hear that you were away from your family and your kingdom for a while…I know what that's like." Her voice changed for a quick second and she seemed a bit sad, but Verge didn't question it. "But you know, I think you should decide to stay there. Live your life in your home dimension! You don't have to devote yourself to this one. Be the princess you were meant to be!"

"…I guess."

"Believe me. You know in your heart that this is only a part-time home."

Verge _did _know in her heart that Gloria was right.

"Ah, but what do I know, right? I'm just a fairy like you." She chuckled lightly. "I only came to convince you to come down, so…please?"

Gloria stood up from the roof and held her hand out to Verge, a small smile on her face. Verge couldn't deny it, so she took her hand.

"Hey!" The two fairies looked down to see everyone was on the Zero's front yard, and Cit was waving his arms. Lena seemed to be repeatedly punching Penn's arm, to which he winced every time. Slowly, the two fairies began to descend to them, and Lena was the first to hug Verge.

"Verge! We're so glad you're alright!"

"Physically, yes," The brunette joked. "Emotionally, not so sure." Penn frowned.

"It's okay, you'll be safe now. I told Penn I would keep punching him until you were finally back to us."

"I can't believe you're a fairy!" Brook exclaimed. She moved closer to Verge and took a hold of her shoulders, examining her. "You seem to be a different kind from Gloria though!"

"We're from different dimensions," the purple fairy explained.

"Still just as cute!"

Verge's pale cheeks turned pink. "Thanks, Brook."

"I'm still very confused and processing all of this," Lance deadpanned. He was staring at Verge, his arms crossed, but he didn't look mad or anything. Just plain blank.

Lena laughed and slapped his back. "This isn't the first time this happened!"

"Wait a minute," Boone spoke up, pointing at Gloria. "So you're from a different dimension too?"

"Yep!" the fairy princess said proudly.

"Do you happen to come from a land where fairies like to wrestle?"

"What."

"Guys, guys," Cit, the tallest, raised his hands and tried to calm everyone down again. "Let's all be remind of why we're here!"

"You know," Sashi suddenly said. "I almost forgot why."

Cit chuckled, bent down, and took hold of Verge's small hands. "Vergie, no matter what, we will always accept you. You're always welcome in the art club, and we're so glad this secret of yours is revealed to us. We hope you know you can trust us with anything."

Gloria, Lena, Brook, and Lance all nodded from behind him. Verge grinned widely and she only realized now how lucky she was to have met these five. The art club moved in to share a quick group hug and Verge smiled at them all.

"Thank you, really, everyone." Her gaze lingered on Gloria, their eyes meeting as if sharing a secret. "I really do trust you…and I believe you accept me…though, you know, one other person who I trusted my life with also once told me that…"

She finally turned and her blue eyes met Penn's cyan orbs. The redhead stepped forward first, took Verge's hands, and looked at her with desperation. "Verge, I'm really sorry. For today, for this week, for everything. I wanted to give you space, but I really didn't like how we were fighting. What I said before was out of line so, please…know that I am very glad to have you as my friend, wings and all. I wouldn't give that up for anything, I wouldn't want you to change no matter what, so…"

His voice trailed off and he stared at the ground. Boone and Sashi exchanged a sad look but when they turned back to Verge, their eyes also looked like they were pleading for her forgiveness. Verge had never been mad at them, but she felt guilty knowing their arguments were the reason their trio was broken for a whole week. Honestly, even with new friends, she couldn't bear losing sight of her old ones. But still…

The fairy lifted Penn's head, and his eyes glinted a bit with hope. But Verge only smiled politely and said, "Let's call it a day."

It was a start, at least. The art club gave Penn hopeful smiles, and he tried to smile back. The nine shared a final group hug and the sun set down as most problems have finally been resolved.

* * *

**OC Credits:**

_**Cit Sirena Teuex**_** \- me**

_**Lena Buchanan**_** – Charr777 ( fanfiction . net), charlattte_ (Instagram)**

_**Brook Wynne **_**an****d**_** Luke "Lance"**_** Duncan – emyy250 ( fanfiction . net)**

_**Gloria**_** – Kinghammer Publishing ( fanfiction . net), kinghammer413 (deviantArt), mariomaker2009 (Instagram)**

**IMPORTANT: Please support Kinghammer Publishing by reading his story of Gloria. Check out his profile and find "Gloria: A Total Drama Fairy-tale". You'll learn more about this fairy! I was actually only supposed to accept human OCs, but I couldn't help making an exception for Gloria!**

**Just because this special episode revolves around these five OCs doesn't mean I'll stop including them in other episodes for a cameo or something! To the ones that submitted their OCs, thank you so much and I really hope you liked this chapter! To everyone else, I hope you liked how I wrote this special episode, I hope it's not too long (bc it's 15 goddamn pages on MS word whew)**

**Again, so sorry it took so long to make guys, but HEY ON THE BRIGHT SIDE, 6 MORE EPISODES AND ONE LONG-ASS FINALE TO GO! (I'm already starting to make my boyfriend help out with it whew-)**

**Please remember to leave a favourite and a review because they really help me get things moving along! Thanks for reading, my ridaas!**


	20. That Purple Guy

**Episode 17: That Purple Guy**

* * *

**OK this took a while so I'm sorry :'D I DIDN'T HAVE INTERNET FOR 3 WEEKS IT WAS TORTURE HUHU**

**But to compensate, I'm uploading 3 chapters in one go! Hope this suffices :))**

* * *

"Phyllis assumes everyone is present and accounted for."

"Yep," Penn laughed lightly as he and his team stepped on the zap platform. "We're all here, Phyllis."

He looked up at Verge in her bigger size, flying above Boone. The brunette fairy nodded curtly, but didn't even look at the redhead.

"In that case, good luck!"

The mechanic zapped them, and they were off on their next mission.

* * *

It took a second for Penn to realize where they were. "Hey, alright! We're back in the beautiful purple forest where everyone and everything is super attractive."

Boone snickered as he leaned towards Penn. "Except for…"

Verge, in her own purple forest world form, looked up at the direction of their glances, and saw Sashi in her large, ugly monster form. As the boys giggled, the fairy flew up to pat Sashi's head.

The beast rolled her eyes. "Ugh. Let's get this over with." She began to check her glasses. "When we left here, the _'beautiful' _princess was to marry the monstrous Grinkon."

"I hated her," Verge growled. "She deserved to marry that beast."

"Easy, tiger. But since then, the princess hired an expensive purple lawyer who found a loophole to get her out of the marriage. We must help her and the Grinkon see that they are each other's true love and go through with the wedding because when they kiss, the power of their love will protect the village from annihilation."

"Of course. When two freaks fall in love, surely it creates a power so strong it can destroy anything."

Penn resisted to laugh. The past few days of the week were pretty awkward with Verge refusing to speak, but it seemed like she was slowly beginning to warm up again. Even though she didn't acknowledge him fully yet, there was process.

The boy leaned on a boulder and nodded at his three friends. "Get ready, guys. Affairs of the heart can get _pretty _messy."

Suddenly, they heard the familiar voice of Princess Argelbleccht echo throughout the forest. "The gentle stream may quickly become a raging river, teaching us that sometimes things are not as they seem. Also you're leaning on my butt."

"_Whoa!" _Penn was instantly shocked as he pulled away from the boulder, revealing that Princess was actually laying there all along. The sight of her immediately made Verge glare and Penn laugh nervously. "What are you doing out here, Princess?"

The purple girl began picking grass out of her hair. "My legal team of (wtf did she say here) advised me to heal my spirit by communing with nature."

"_Or _you're too much of a coward to break things off with the Grinkon face-to-face," Sashi said accusingly.

The Princess blinked. "This filthy cesspool with legs makes a valid point." Both Sashi and Verge growled. _"Grinkon! I summon you!"_

Almost immediately, the familiar monster came charging in, happy to know his love was calling him, and he pushed Sashi out of the way and Penn and Boone had to move. Luckily, Sashi could fly. He picked the Princess up and smothered her with his hug.

The Princess was overwhelmed. "Set me down, Grinky. I need to speak some difficult truths."

Knowing where this was going, Penn tried to step up. "Uhh, haha, let's not be hasty here. Let's make sure we thought everything through."

But the Grinkon punched him away. If it weren't for Verge's dust, he would've slammed right into a tree. Penn then processed that this was the first time in days that she'd actually helped him. "Quiet, my lady's talkin'!"

The Princess then began to keep talkin'. "Like all living things, you are precious. But as with the ugliest of living things I am completely repulsed by you. Deep in the bowels of the Earth, they may be some sightless, unfortunate creature without the gift of smell or intelligence willing to lower itself to accept you as a mate."

The Grinkon sniffed, and Verge gaped. "That was both the meanest and most beautiful rejection I have ever heard."

"Well, don't worry," the Grinkon said sadly. "You'll never have to see me again."

The Princess looked down, as if actually regretting her decision for a bit.

Suddenly, the Grinkon cried out and began to shake. He sputtered as parts of his body began to shrink and shape until eventually, he turned into a beautiful, purple human man with muscles, a nice mop of hair, and wonderful orange eyes.

"Whoa," Sashi breathed.

"Dang," the Princess smiled stupidly.

Even Verge sighed dreamily. "Oh wings."

Penn was both annoyed and confused. "Uh, Grink? What just happened?"

"I shed my body," he said, with a lovely, regular voice. He flexed his arm. "Normal Grinkon stuff. Well, I sure hope there's somebody for me out there. Probably not." With his final word, he sulked away.

"I think I made a terrible mistake," the Princess moaned.

Both Sashi and Verge raised an eyebrow and said, "You think?"

"We gotta follow that Grinkon!" Boone spoke up.

"Boone's right," Verge agreed, perking up as she flew. She looked to the Princess, her expression full of both annoyance and assurance. "We're gonna fix this."

They later hid as they watched the Grinkon in the village, helping girls that fawned over him. The five peeked over a stall and Penn spoke up as Boone chewed on fruit. "We need to get you back together with the Grinkon in time for the wedding tomorrow. You two need a real connection. There must be _something _you have in common."

"The Grinkon likes fighting a destroying stuff," Boone put in. "Just like Sashi?"

Verge narrowed her eyes. "Are you implying something?"

"…Maaaybe?"

Sashi picked Boone and Penn up by her flippers. _"Fine. _Verge and I will teach the Princess how to be gross and tough, you guys be the wedding planners. And it better be romantic!"

She pushed them against the stall's blanket roof and used it as a catapult to send the two boys flying off and yelling. Verge couldn't help chuckling as she flew closer to Sashi's head.

"Well, Sash, it's just you, me, and the Princess. Seems like we have a lot of work to do."

* * *

The three were sitting by a river and Sashi ate a bunch of bugs, causing her to fart out of her ears again. Verge only petted the surviving bugs, reassuring that she wouldn't eat them. Sashi offered one to the Princess, but somehow she'd managed to use it as lipstick, blush, and an accessory for her hair. Sashi and Verge then took her to a very muddy place, where Sashi demonstrated how to crawl under small spaces and still get filthy regardless. But the Princess only used that place as a mud spa and had her servants pamper her. It was then did the girls decide to give up.

Sashi groaned. "We're just gonna have to fake it."

Verge flew to the Princess, who was being leaf-fanned by a servant, and gritted her teeth as she forced a smile. "Since you're incredibly hopeless, dear Princess, Sashi is just gonna have to tell you everything you're going to say on your date with the Grinkon."

"Date?" the Princess echoed, lifting a cucumber slice from her eye to look at the fairy.

"Yes, I'm going to find a way to get the Grinkon to enjoy one romantic evening with you but _you _better not mess up and say exactly what Sashi tells you at dinner _and _the wedding!"

The Princess glared. "Excuse you, I am a _royal—"_

"_Yeah? _Well clearly you don't know that I don't tell people everything, but I will tell you this _guess what,_ _apparently so am I!" _Verge remembered the uneasiness she felt around this Princess the last time she was here. She hadn't known she was a fairy princess yet. But just before this mission, a fairy had told Verge how during her childhood, her father had encouraged her to get whatever she wanted. Verge was never a materialistic person, but her parents did give her many things. Being with the Princess the last time reminded Verge of everything she had almost become, but simply refused to be. Now that she knew she was a princess, she couldn't help taking her anger out on Argelbleccht. "If you really want this guy and if you don't want me to turn your guts inside out – believe me I will do that - you're going to do _exactly as we tell you to do am I making myself clear?!"_

The Princess squeaked and nodded instantly. "Yes ma'am."

* * *

It apparently didn't take much for Verge to convince the Grinkon to do the date night with the Princess – threatening to kidnap his mother for ransom helped – and soon the two were seated together at a rock table in the middle of the forest, enjoying a meal sponsored by the same cook that was preparing the wedding cake. (Verge walked in on Boone and Penn having a food fight and scolded them as she politely requested for the cook's service.) Sashi and the fairy were hiding in the lake nearby – with tiny Verge sitting on Sashi's head – as they held a long, hollow stick with two holes at the end to serve as a mic. The Princess then lit the candle between them and smiled at the Grinkon.

"Thank you for agreeing to have dinner with me. After all the horrible things I said about you." She was leaning against her palms and gazing at the Grinkon dreamily.

"Well, I guess it's for the best that we broke up then. We have nothing in common except for being incredibly beautiful. I mean, what are your hobbies?"

"Umm—"

Before she could say another word, Sashi used to large stick to poke her ear and began to whisper. "I love breaking things with my bare hands."

The Princess repeated the words exactly.

The Grinkon lit up at this. "Me too! What do you like better, smashing or crushing?"

Not knowing what to say, the Princess leaned towards to stick. Sashi spoke more. "Well, everyone thinks smashing's better, but there's nothing but there's nothing like feeling something crushed between your fingers."

It was the Grinkon's turn to gaze dreamily at his date. "Just…wow…"

For some reason, he began to sing, much to Verge's annoyance.

_~"Could you ever sing a Grinkon's song? _

_Could you ever hold a Grinkon's paw?"~_

The Princess held his hand and made a show in the air with her light force. Verge quickly brought in their plates of food at that.

_~"I could sing a song of hope and light_

_I would live a life of good and right"~_

The Grinkon began to nudge an eyeball from his food towards her.

_~"Could you ever dream a Grinkon's dream?_

_Spend your life with someone as gross as me?~"_

Then, the Princess took him by the hands and used her light force to make them float in the air.

~"_I'd spend my life with someone gross as you"~_

Sashi and Verge smiled at each other and did a "tiny fist-bump" as the couple began to sing together.

_~"The grossness tells me I love you"~_

They continued to hold hands and gaze into each other's eyes as they slowly descended back into their seats. Then, the Grinkon spoke up. "Okay, this may sound crazy, but, we _could _still get married tomorrow."

"Hang on a sec," the Princess said, still dazed. She leaned towards the stick and said what both Verge and Sashi shouted together. "Say yes, you idiot!"

Everyone in that area was quite shocked. "Uh, yes!"

The Grinkon, no longer confused, pumped his fists in the air. "Alright!" He turned around and grinned at his monstrous mother, who was somehow standing behind watching the whole time. "Mom! We're gettin' married!"

"_That's my boy!"_

As the two beautiful people stood from their dinner table and began to walk away, Sashi and Verge finally found it safe to emerge from the river. "Finally!" Verge exclaimed. "On the plus side, if ever he finds out she was lying, divorce is an option."

Sashi chuckled. "Heh, I don't know. That Grink is so blind with love he'd probably follow the Princess anywhere."

"Hmph." The fairy back-flipped, growing to her human size, and crossed her arms as she watched the couple continue to smile at each other. "That Princess is very selfish and stuck-up. She could one day commit a mistake so unforgivable he'd think of nothing but to leave her."

At this, Sashi hesitated for a long while before she put her flipper on Verge's shoulder, making her face the beast. "Or, he'd realize that his love for her is eternal, and regardless of her mistakes, he'll always come back to her."

At this point, Verge knew Sashi was talking about something else. This made the fairy rub her arm, feeling a bit uneasy. Sashi smiled softly and put Verge on her back. The fairy smiled a bit as the two flew off to get some rest for tomorrow's big event.

* * *

Penn and Boone cleaned up well. Despite their disagreements on what to do for the wedding, they seemed to pull through and find a way to come to some agreement. As the Grinkon adjusted his black bowtie around his neck, Penn and Boone refused to look at each other. Verge scoffed and nudged Sashi, who also huffed at the déjà vu they were experiencing (last time they were in this world, weren't they also disagreeing quite a lot?). The citizens of the purple forest were gathered, seated in the pews, and Sashi had the long stick ready as Princess Argelbleccht walked down the aisle. A bagpipe player was playing the song she and the Grinkon were playing last night.

"How…" Verge murmured. Sashi only shrugged.

As the Princess met with the Grinkon, the priest began to speak. "We are gathered here today to join these two in purple matrimony. Does anyone here see any reason why these two should not be wed?"

"I do."

Everyone gasped when they turned to the end of the aisle, shocked to see a purple puppet being dangled on strings. Rippen in his orange Cronad form was used as the head. He seemed to be on board with some plan but didn't look all too thrilled with it. "I am the Purple Prince of Purple Cisco, and I've come to wed the Princess as foretold in the book in the book of things that will happen in the future."

Penn crossed his arms. "Uhh, no one's buying this Rippen."

The said villain glared up at Larry, who was controlling the strings of the puppet. "I told you this was a stupid plan!"

"Don't blame the plan! _Somebody _didn't sell their character!"

"No matter!" Rippen hopped off the puppet and began walking down the aisle. "Or ridiculous – not to mention humiliating – distraction still bought time for the Cronad army to attack! You foolish, defenseless forest people!"

Everyone looked up in horror to see all the Cronad ships, looking very scared as they were drawing closer. Rippen laughed evilly, but the Grinkon's mother picked him up and ate him whole. _"Larry, for the record, this is all your fault!"_

Penn then turned to the couple. "The only thing that can save your people is your love. Let's get to the vows you'vewritten for each other."

Sashi then poked the Princess' ear with her stick and said the vow. "I promise to crush and break everything except your heart."

The Grinkon beamed. "And I promise to always—"

He couldn't even finish his sentence. The same spazzing and groaning that happened yesterday was happening again, but the Grinkon began to grow and grow more ugly. Suddenly, before everyone's eyes, he was the same Grinkon as before, except the only thing he kept after shedding his body was the hair.

While the Princess was horrified as she gripped her bouquet of flowers, the Grinkon looked relieved. "Whew! Wow, glad that's over," He spoke with his old, barbaric voice. "My metaformsisis is complete. This is what I look like forever!"

"Dang," was the only thing the Princess could say.

"The wheel of doubt is turning!" Verge whisper-yelled to Sashi.

The beast tried to shout in the Princess' ear through the stick and continued poking her. "Just marry him, stupid!"

But the Princess pushed the stick away. "The wind whispers its eternal wisdom: don't marry that grotesque thing! The wedding's off."

"_Our weapon is charging," _a voice from above boomed. _"Prepare to die!"_

"Oh wings," Verge cursed. Everyone else gasped again.

Sashi had enough and flew forward, her giant figure looming over the figure. "Your people are under attack and all you care about are his looks?! You are the most shallow, self-absorbed, _diva brat I've ever—"_

"_Hey!" _Sashi was cut off by the Grinkon, and everyone was surprised at what he was about to say. "You don't speak to my lady that way! It's okay that she's not nice, or loyal, or honest, or trustworthy—"

He began to count on his fingers, and Verge could almost swear she could hear the Cronads exchanging some looks. Even she exchanged one with Sashi.

"—or decent, or tolerant, or respectful, or humane, or ethical, or moral, or generally polite in every way, but we shared a song together and it was awesome. And what I've come to realize is that, deep down, I'll always love her."

From a few feet away, Verge looked over at Penn. The boy somehow decided to do the same and look at her. For a brief moment, the two stared at each other.

Eventually, Verge smiled. And Penn smiled back.

Meanwhile, the Princess was shedding a tear. "Wow. No one has ever stood up for me before without me pretending to be nice to them!"

The Grinkon smiled, and suddenly, he began to sing again – in the same voice as when he was hot.

_~"Could you ever dream a Grinkon's dream?"~_

Argelbleccht wiped her tears and also sang.

_~"Could you spend your life with someone gross as me?"~_

The Grinkon picked her up and spun slowly, as they both sang together and the Grinkon's mom sobbed.

_~"This forest knows no love like this~_

_Our forest saved by just one kiss~"_

As they kissed finally, the Grinkon's lips enveloped the Princess' entire face, but still she managed to say, "I love you."

As they pulled away, a bright purple light shot out from the two and began to reach the sky.

"_Our weapon will be charged in 10…9…8…7…-"_

The light it the Cronad ships, and they all exploded in the sky, creating fireworks and causing the people to gaze happily. Verge pumped her fist and said, "Yes!" Sashi rolled her eyes at Boone and Penn, who were hugging and sobbing.

"I bet we're gonna zap out," Boone cried. "before they serve the cake!"

* * *

Sure enough, they did, and when they were settled back on the zap platform, Boone and Penn turned away. Verge floated down before them, her back towards the three. As Boone and Sashi walked past her, Penn looked scared to even face her. He stepped closer before stepping back. He opened his mouth only to close it. And then the fairy finally turned around.

"I'm sorry, Zero. I got too worked up over what you said. Honestly, these past few days without your comfort was…torture." When she rubbed her arms and looked at him with sorrowful blue eyes, how could Penn not feel remorse?

He stepped closer now, a hand on her shoulder. "I understand Verge. I've been hating myself every day you weren't talking to me. I really am sorry. I'll never say anything like that again. I hope you can forgive me, and trust me again."

The pale-skinned fairy teared up, but refused to let them fall. Instead, she wrapped her arms around his neck and tiptoed to hug him tighter. "Of course I do, Zero. I always will. I love you too much."

Penn could see Boone and Sashi smiling, but it wasn't any kind of teasing smile. It was a nice, relieved smile that told him things were finally alright. The redhead smiled his widest smile and hug Verge back, his grip o her tight and fierce, afraid to let her go once more. "Love you too, Verge."

* * *

**YAYYY PENN AND VERGE ARE OFFICIALLY OK NOW HOW ARE YA'LL**


	21. Rootilda

**Episode 18: Rootilda**

**Heads up, I'm gonna be mentioning the Art Club members every now and then :)**

* * *

"So yeah, basically, we're all good now," Verge finished the story of her previous mission, and Lena listened intently as she munched on a sandwich. The two were seated at a bench outside school, and Lena decided to skip her last class to spend some time with her.

The brunette girl swallowed and said thoughtfully, "I see. Did you guys kiss?"

This caused a red hue to spread across the fairy's pale cheeks. "What? No! Why?"

"Honestly, I ship you two."

"Just the other day you were punching his arm repeatedly!"

"Doesn't mean I don't think you guys are cute!"

Verge rolled her eyes playfully. The bell rang, signalling the end of school, and someone called out, "Hey!" She turned to see Sashi waving a hand, with Boone and Penn behind her. Verge then stood from her seat and smiled at her friend beside her.

"It was nice hanging out Lena, thanks for listening!"

"Eh, don't mention it, it's nice to hear about your missions," the girl waved a hand, smirking. "Also, I'm just trying to prove to Lance that I skip more times than he does."

The fairy met up with her three friends and soon they were together in the Odyssey, on the platform, ready for their next zap. Phyllis looked down on them as she punched in some buttons. "You're going back to Plant World. Good luck!"

The four grinned, with Penn and Boone bumping hands and Penn and Verge doing a tiny fist-bump. They were ready to be zapped in, but it seemed to be taking a long time for that to happen. "Uh, Phyllis?" Penn called out. "Still here?"

That's when the four realized Karen the Bear and Derek the Robot were pampering the mechanic – with Karen filing her nails - so the long nail extensions she had were stopping her from holding anything. "Perhaps mani-pedi was bad idea." Derek pulled away from her foot and she used it to push the lever. "Oopsie-daisy."

Verge muttered as they were zapped in. "I want a mani-pedi…"

* * *

She opened her eyes in Plant World and moved a bit until she was out of Sashi's dandelion head. She twirled, a free dandelion tuft, and looked at Penn, who seemed to be lost in thought.

_Penn looked lost in thought, but, that was actually the face he made when he had to go to the bathroom._

The cactus immediately glared up at the ceiling, knowing it was Boone being an annoying narrator again. "Hey! Stop narrating things that aren't even true!"

"It's true sometimes," Verge coughed. The cactus just glared.

_Penn's objections couldn't cover up the obvious: it was go-time!_

At this, Penn crossed his arms, looking downright annoyed. _"I'm Boone, _and I think I'm so smart and important because narrating is _so hard," _he mocked.

_Like Penn could do better._

"Oh, I could!"

_Couldn't._

"Could!"

_Couldn't!_

"_Cooould!"_

"_Zero, oh my wings, shut up."_

"You don't have wings Verge!"

He stopped talking when they suddenly heard a familiar singing voice. Well, a familiar _scatting _voice. Waltzing into the office like she owned the place was the beautiful rose they'd met the last time they came here.

"Orchid!" Penn exclaimed.

"Orchid," Verge seethed.

Even at her acknowledgement, she only kept making those sounds that confused Verge, so Sashi crossed her arms and snapped, "Enough scatting! What do you want? Is your brother Fern pretending to be missing again so he doesn't have to deal with his annoying sister?"

"Ooh, burn." Verge gestured like she was trying to fist bump, and Sashi curled her stem and bumped it against Verge, but the dandelion didn't know her own strength, and the tuft flew away. "Ow."

"Not this time," Orchid finally answered Sashi and placed her leaf on Penn's cheek. "I want what every girl plant wants: to be a famous _sc-a-a-a-at _singer!" She sang the word "scat", and Verge floated back to Sashi, glaring at the rose. "But to do that, I need to make an album and that takes money." She threw herself into Penn's arms and rubbed his cheek more. "I'm a damsel in distress. Will you be my knight in shining armored flower _po-o-o-o-ot~"_

Penn's cheeks were pink and he couldn't stop smiling stupidly but he managed to pull away from Orchid and say, "I'd like to help Orchid, but the truth is, I don't have any money."

Her eyes widened a bit when he said that, and Verge floated by Penn's head and narrowed her eyes. "He means beat it, gold-digger."

"Wha—no, not what I—"

"Plus everyone hates scat singing so no thanks, get out!" Sashi shoved Orchid out the door, despite her yelps.

_Sashi shoved Orchid out the door, but what she really wish she could shove out were hers and Verge's jealous feelings._

The dandelion growled under her breath and Verge floated back to Sashi. "Game to beat him up after the mission?"

"I'm down."

Another plant barged right into the office, the lightning flashing just as she entered. It was a hydrangea plant that looked like a big bush with purple weeds, sunglasses, and a big hat. The voice itself when she spoke sounded high and mighty.

"Sorry, no time for knocking." She shoved Sashi out of the way, and Verge instantly tried to help her up. "I'm Rootilda Lacecap, I'm sure you've heard of me. The Baroness of Potting Soil!" The three other plants in the room just stared with Sashi sitting in a file drawer, grumbling with anger. "Yes? No! Come on, catch up! I'm the richest plant in Plantywood!"

"Fancy resume, Madam," Penn said, going to sit on his desk. "But what does that have to do with me?"

_Once again, Penn needed to make everything about him._

The cactus groaned and rolled his eyes. "Ugh, I'm sorry Ms. Lacecap. We have a pesky narrator following us around."

"Please, call me Rootilda. And that's not a narrator! That's my third cousin's grand seed and only heir…" She reached into the pocket of Penn's detective coat and pulled out something small, grey, and brown. "Basil Perennial!"

"_Dun, dun, duuuun!" _Boone sang.

Verge, who was only slightly larger than Boone at the moment, flew beside Rootilda's leaf hand smirked. "Sweet. I'm bigger for once."

Penn and Sashi, however, were not amused. As Penn took Boone, he glared. "You were in my pocket the whole time?!"

Sashi snatched Boone up, as if ready to squeeze the life out of him, but maintained herself. "How did you know Basil was in his pocket?"

"Lucky guess," Rootilda replied. "But that's not why I'm here. I have a rare form of non-prunable leaf rot!" She plucked off one of her purple buds and tossed it, choking down a sob. "I don't have much time left. My empire needs to stay in the family, so I'm giving it to Basil." She patted the small seed, her voice cooed lovingly. "Anyhoo, come by tomorrow and we'll deal with all the paperwork! May your leaves stay green!"

She then left, her leaf hand scratching against the wall, and the thunder and lightning crashed and flashed.

"Oh, how rude, she scratched our wall!" Penn cried. "Wait, is our mission to fix this wall? 'Cause I'm, uh, not much of a handyman."

Verge huffed. "I'm sure you don't have to get your cactus needles dirty."

"True," Sashi said, checking her Specs. "Our mission is to solve the mystery surrounding Basil, aka _Boone."_

"Once again, Boone was at the center of Penn, Verge, and Sashi's lives," the seed continued to narrate.

Penn brought out a pot, still looking annoyed. "Better get you planted."

"Boone was their sun, moon, and s_tars-!" _He yelped out at that last word, as Penn shoved him into the soil. The three plants now smirked that he was literally shut up.

* * *

Much time passed until tomorrow night came. The detectives – and dandelion tuft – arrived at Rootilda's home, and they walked into her meeting room with Boone's pot in Penn's hands.

"Where's Basil?" Rootilda demanded.

"Oh, he's here," Penn replied. "Yeah, we just wanted to enjoy some peace and quiet before the meeting. But he's around." He narrowed his eyes down at the pot, his voice softening. "Oh, he's around…"

"You sound creepy, Zero."

"Alright, alright. Sash?"

The dandelion held up a watering can and sprinkled some water on the soil. They heard Boone grunting as a stem sprouted out from the pot, and the seed – who was no longer a seed – grew into a healthy little plant. Boone stretched his leaves, grinning. "Oh, that feels good!" He flexed his leaves, exclaiming. _"Yaaah! _I feel so powerful!"

Rootilda held up a pen and a contract. "Sign here, and _this _will all be yours!" Her voice echoed throughout the room.

Boone happily took the pen and was ready to sign. But all of a sudden, the lights were out, and they heard the part-time Wiseman's familiar scream. When the light came back, Boone was gone! All that remained was his pot, a pen, and a paper poked through the pen.

"Boone!" Penn, Verge, and Sashi cried out.

Penn grabbed the note left and read it aloud. "'You'll never see Basil alive again unless you pay 1 million chlorobills?!"

Verge was about to say something, but then flew towards the direction of one of the room's windows, gasping. Everyone turned and saw a familiar tree stuck in the pane.

"Big Red!" Penn and Sashi grabbed him instantly before he could escape. They were both caught in the branches for a moment, but eventually got out, and Penn waved an accusing cactus needle at him.

"What did you do with Boone, you villain?!" he demanded.

"Boone's missing?" Rippen asked, seeming surprised. "I was climbing in to kidnap him."

"Oh really? Try and deny that this is your embarrassingly poor handwriting!" He waved the paper in the tree's face. "Try it, I dare you!"

"Yes, that's my note! I had a break-in at my hideout. The only thing stolen was my ransom note. So I had to write a new one." He brought out another piece of paper from his suit, and Sashi snatched it.

"Very clever. Trying to throw us off with _two _notes!" She ripped the new note in half and grabbed Rippen by the branch. "Where's Larry?! Can he back-up your story?"

"Oh, he's been gone all day. It's been rather lovely."

"Why are you so honest about this whole situation…"

Penn grabbed Rippen by his collar and shook him. "Why, you can't be this dumb! _Stop lying and spill the beans!"_

"I don't know anything! I a_m_ this dumb!"

"The truthful Rippen wouldn't admit he's dumb!" Verge accused, flying too close to the tree's face.

"Save it!" Sashi grabbed Rippen again, nearing her face to his this time. "You're gonna cool your roots in the hoosegow!"

As Big Red fell to the floor, Penn noticed an "Employee of the Month" picture frame on the wall. "Hey, isn't that Orchid's brother, Fern?" The familiar fern's picture was placed in the frame, smiling naively. "Employee of the Month…"

"Oh! Uhhh yes!" Rootilda suddenly said, her tone almost nervous. "He's our branch manager!"

Penn rubbed his chin. "Something about the case against Big Red didn't seem quite right…"

"But if Big Red's telling the truth," Sashi said. "Then who _really _kidnapped Boone?"

"Do we have any more leads?" Verge said, deep in thought.

The cactus then looked off into space, his eyes narrowing as he spoke. "Penn had a hunch that Fern was involved but he didn't know how. He hoped Orchid could put him in touch with Fern. Yes, this was a twisty mess of a case, all right. Twistier that the twistiest pretzel."

"Zero, what the dust."

Penn shrugged. "What?"

"You don't have to do that," Sashi said blankly, arms crossed and her expression not amused.

"I have an idea on where we can find Orchid," the dandelion tuft spoke up. "Remember the bar we went to the last time we were here?"

"The Green House!" Penn grinned. "Right! Let's go!"

The three managed to make it there, and somehow The Plantywood Times had already published a bunch of newspapers for Big Red's crimes. Verge saw some headlines by a newspaper stand, grumbling about how fast rumors spread, before they entered the bar. A host stood behind a mic, in the middle of a band, and said, "The Green House is pleased to introduce…Orchid."

The beautiful rose emerged from the curtains, wearing a long, red, sequined evening gown and her usual pretty smile. She held the mic, her voice breathy. "This one goes out to one, _special detective." _Her words made Penn blush, but Verge nudged him with her tuft body.

"Focus," she snarled, and Penn rolled his eyes.

They went across the club to two plants that seemed to be complaining about something. One short cactus was scowling at Orchid, as he spoke to the tulip bartender. "I told Orchid I didn't wanna hear any more scat singing! It's just a bunch of sounds! _Sing words!"_

The dandelion tuft coughed, and Penn took a seat. "Hey there, Skip? You got time for a quick quesh?"

"_Anything _to drown out the sound of that!" Skip said, who seemed to be the manager of the Green House.

"Not so much a fan of Orchid's…doo-a-ba-doo-biddy-skoo-biddy-bap?"

"It makes me want to break my own stems! She keeps asking me for money to make a scat singing album. _That's not happening!"_

Penn and Verge exchanged a look and the tuft made a shrugging gesture. "It has no future."

"You ever see her brother Fern come in the club?"

"Fern? The Potting Soil Executive? No, but I wish he did. Now that Basil's out of the way, Fern's next in line to take over the company. I bet _he _could get Orchid a job that doesn't involve making everyone's head hurt!"

He started walking towards the stage and Verge scoffed. "That's gonna be hard. No matter what Orchid does is excruciatingly painful in many levels."

"Hey," Penn mildly scolded, but Sashi just patted Verge's head.

"Okay, okay, that's enough, thank you Orchid—" The manager screamed when he placed his leaf hand on the rose, and glared as he held it. "Easy with the thorns!"

"See what I mean, Zero?"

But Penn was narrating again. "Even though the case was tough to crack, like an egg with an unusually hard shell, Penn had an idea that might just crack this eggy case wide open. Like a walnut."

"Mm," Sashi said. "You're getting worse."

* * *

After setting up a meeting at the Potting Soil company – and annoying Sashi with more awful narrating – Penn lead his two friends to their rendezvous, where Rootilda waited for them.

"Why did you make me get out of my flower bed to come down here?" she said grumpily. "I assumed you'd found Basil, my third cousin's grandseed and only heir!"

Penn narrowed his eyes. "Like drinking milk past the expiration date, Penn didn't feel too sure about that."

"Is he narrating himself?"

"Yeah," Sashi and Verge said, disappointedly.

Suddenly, the ground shook, and the ground began to give way and form a large hole. Big Red appeared out from underneath the floor, grinning wickedly as he held a shovel. Everyone was quite surprised to see him.

"Rippen? How'd you break out of the slammer?" Penn exclaimed. "And how'd you find us?"

"When I saw the newspaper headline about this meeting, I tunnelled out of jail so I could kidnap Basil for real!"

"I don't have time for this!" Rootilda shouted. "I'm a busy Hydrangea!"

"That's just the thing," Penn retorted. "You're _not _a Hydrangea!"

Everyone looked shocked. Rootilda gasped. Then Rippen. Then Sashi. Then Verge. But Penn continued. "And, you're not Rootilda!"

"Ehem." The real Rootilda emerged from the shadows and exposed herself. "Ah, he's right." Once she's confirmed Penn's accusations, she retreated back into the darkness.

"Then this impostor must be the only plant who had a motive to kidnap Basil!" Sashi exclaimed. "Fern!"

"Nope! It wasn't me!" The said fern also appeared from another corner of the room, his smiling face exposed to everyone as he waved. "But hey!" He went back into the dark, and Verge frowned.

"Why are you guys just doing that…"

"Then who's in the Rootilda costume?" the dandelion asked.

"Allow me to explain," Penn started, smirking. "When Rootilda left our office, she scratched the wall. But hydrangeas don't leave scratches like that, neither do ferns!"

"_It's true!" _Fern's voice called out.

"Only plants with thorns scratch like that. Plants like…_roses!" _The cactus ripped the Rootilda costume right off, revealing the true impostor standing before them: Orchid!

Orchid gasped first. Then Rippen. Then Sashi. Then Verge. Then Penn…then Rippen again?

"Stop gasping," Verge scolded.

Rippen shrugged. "Just adding dramatic effect."

"Anyway, how'd you know, Zero?"

"I put it together in the club when I saw Orchid scratch the manager," Penn explained. "Orchid wanted Basil out of the way so Fern would take over Rootilda's company and have the money to fund her unpopular scat singing career."

The rose then began to laugh nervously. "Thank you! You've been a great audience!" She started scat singing again, attempting to walk away, but Sashi was blocking her path.

"You're not going anywhere, sister."

"So," Penn kept talking. "She waited until Fern and Rootilda were on a business trip to Leaf Vegas. That gave her the opportunity to impersonate Rootilda so she could kidnap Basil!"

Orchid smiled sweetly. "For a plant, you're one smart cookie."

As she stroked Penn's cheek, the cactus was still grinning. But Verge flew in between the two. "Keep your thorns to yourself!"

Sashi stepped forward. "You're not gonna flirt your way out of this one, lady! How did you know Boone was going to try and kidnap Boone so you could frame him?"

"Uh, I can answer that one!" Larry's familiar voice echoed and they turned to see him emerge out of another dark corner. "I met Orchid to get sightseeing tips and accidentally told her Big Red's whole plan!" He laughed, as if it was some old joke, then turned serious again before retreating.

Verge was all ruffled up. "Seriously?! Why don't they stay longer?!"

Penn ignored her. "That just leaves the most important question – for the record, not Verge's—"

"Hmph."

"—_Where's Basil?!"_

"Sadly, for a cactus, Penn wasn't that sharp." From yet, another corner, Boone hopped in, potted plant and all, still a stem but now had a smug look on his face.

"Escaped an hour after I took him," Orchid noted.

"Then why didn't you come back?"

Boone continued to hop forward. "Boone wanted to teach Penn a lesson: a lesson about narrating."

"Alright, Boone, you're right!" the cactus gave in. "It's not as easy as it sounds."

"Penn had just made the understatement of the year!"

"Pick him up," Verge said blankly, and Penn did as told as Boone kept talking.

"Listening to Penn try to narrate was like listening to a cat choke on a fur ball: sad and gross."

Reaching his limit, Penn didn't even look as he let go of the pot. "Whoops."

Both Sashi and Verge smirked as the three walked away from the dropped plant. But he still kept talking. "Penn was the kind of guy who dropped his friends and break their pots…and then walk away."

After settling everything, finally – getting Orchid and Big Red back in jail, putting Basil in a new pot – the four got zapped back home.

* * *

"I'm proud of you though, Zero," Verge was saying, as Phyllis settled them on the zap platform. The two did a quick tiny fist bump before the fairy grew to human size. "You managed to solve this mystery like a real detective. Unlike last time."

"Could've done without the pointless narrating, though," Sashi said bluntly.

Penn laughed lightly. "Thanks, Verge. Just trying to be worthy of you again."

At his words, Verge couldn't help but blush a bit.

She would've kept looked like an idiot but Sashi tapped her shoulder. "Hey, Verge." She jutted her head towards a certain direction.

The two looked around and found Boone trying to leave the Odyssey early. But the girls knew their rage was strong enough, so began to run/fly. The brunette boy shrieked and hightailed it out of there, the two girls following pursuit.

Penn only smiled and shook his head.

Verge was glaring but deep in her heart, she knew her friend needed to know soon.


	22. The Most Dangerous World Imaginable

**Episode 19: The Most Dangerous World Imaginable**

* * *

**Super sorry that this is a very short chapter and again, so sorry for posting this late but what can I do yk :')**

**Remember that I had two other chapters posted before this one, so look out for them. I promise I'll try to update again as soon as I can, I just really have a bunch of stuff to do :( And I'm hoping my Internet doesn't die down again..**

**Also, guys, so since this episode didn't focus on Penn a lot, naturally I just did my own thing for it, and I hope you guys likey~**

* * *

"Happy anniversary, Mom and Dad!/Happy anniversary, Mr. Brock and Mrs. Vonnie!" Penn and Verge said together, as they sat side by side on the couch.

"Thanks, guys!/So sweet!" The parents said in return, from the other end of the MUHU call.

"Oh, look at that!" Penn pointed out. "You built a cabin…out of bones…"

"Not bad, huh?" Brock smirked. "We got tired of sleeping under the stars since the stars here vomit acid down on you." As if on cue, one star that was shown in the background vomited, and Verge gagged.

"Gross. And scary."

"We're fine, though!" Vonnie waved a hand.

"Look," Penn spoke up, his gaze stern and serious. "This is the last anniversary you guys are gonna have to spend in the Most Dangerous World Imaginable. 'Cause we're gonna find the two shards we need to bring you both home."

The fairy beside him beamed and brought something out from behind her. "I even did an art collaboration with my friend Brook so I could show you a visual representation of how I hope it would be like when we rescue you!" Verge proudly showed the artwork: the background was a nearly perfect accurate watercolour piece of the Odyssey's interior, and drawings of Penn, Verge, and his parents were all hopping out of the MUT, happy and smiling. "Brook did the background and I drew us! She's very good at making landscapes out of simple description."

"Aw, Verge, that's very sweet of you," Vonnie gushed.

"You and your friend are very talented indeed," Brock smiled. "And I know you will be able to save us! 'Cause Penn, you're a chip off the old Brock!" The blond bearded man began to wheeze out in laughter. "Get it?! 'Cause I'm Brock!"

His wife rolled her eyes playfully and looked at Penn. "Your father likes that joke so much, he almost named you Chip. Remember, honey? Our worst fight?"

The two chuckled and nuzzled against each other and began to kiss passionately. Penn and Verge exchanged uncomfortable looks. Verge pretended to gag again.

"Uhhhh well uh, looks like you two could use some privacy, so uh, we're gonna, we gotta go anyway! Love you bye!"

"Love you guys!" Verge waved before Penn shut the MUHU off.

"You too!/You too, guys!" the adults called out after.

"Well that was dissatisfying," Penn joked.

Verge laughed. "It was sweet, but no please."

Penn chuckled again and stood from his seat. "Well, we better get to work."

He was already starting to walk out the door. Verge had an internal argument in her head. Should she tell him today? Right now? Was it even worth mentioning—

"Zero?" Verge called out, and the redhead spun around.

"What's up? Something wrong?"

Verge couldn't get her lips to move. She was frozen in place, her tongue feeling like it was glued down. But she had to say it. She should say it! Now was a good time! She should do it now!

"I…I…I…"

The door to the house burst open, revealing a glaring Sashi. "We don't have all day," she growled.

"Whoops, sorry," Penn huffed, crossing his arms. "No need to go bullish on us, Sash."

"Let's just go."

The redhead reached over to squeeze his best friend's hand. "Whatever it is you wanna say, maybe say it later?"

Sure. Later. Just like she always told herself. "Okay…"

The walk to the Odyssey was silent, except for Boone's obsessing over the flip flops he broke today. Once inside, they stepped onto the zap platform and noticed Phyllis couldn't seem to tear her eyes away from the magazine she was reading. There was a MUHU screen beside her, clearly showing she was playing some word puzzle with Vonnie, but the woman was invested. There was some article on the cover about a girl and a boy somehow managing to cleave dimensions together. **((A/N: please get this reference-))**

"Today you go back to Animal World," the mechanic said simply, still not looking up as one hand managed the MUT controls and the other gripped her magazine.

Verge frowned. "Wait wait which one—"

"Good luck!"

* * *

Sashi checked the Specs as soon as they arrived, before the boys and the fairy could flex their biceps. "Mission today seems simple enough: protect our fortress, make sure none of Rippen's barbarian foxes get past it."

"Yes! A simple fighting challenge!" Boone pumped a fist.

"With your trusty apprentice to help you along the way!" The four turned to see a familiar, nerdy-looking owl.

"Oh, Hogarth!" Verge said, surprised.

"Who?" the owl teased.

"Ugh…so you're back."

Boone and Hogarth immediately started chatting it up, and Sashi rolled her eyes and climbed up a tree to hide from their conversation. Verge rolled her eyes playfully and turned to Penn.

"So, Zero—"

"Get ready guys!" Penn said, clenching his fists and preparing his stance. "Things are about to get messy."

Verge so wanted to say that even as he was trying to be intimidating, he still looked adorable. But she couldn't form the words. Not this time. Besides, just as he said that, the small army of foxes emerged from a small hill and came charging in. Rippen was before them all, looking as weird and as evil as ever.

"We'll get you this time, Penn Zero!" the villain shouted.

"Hey!" Verge yelled back. "He's not the only one here! Let's get 'em guys!"

Sashi, Boone, and Hogarth charged, and Penn followed. "Who made you leader?!"

"Shh, Zero, behind you!"

Penn was almost victim to a fox's punch, straight to the face, but he ducked just in time. Verge rolled over his back to send a powerful kick at the fox. It was sent flying straight into a rock.

Other foxes tried to lash at them with their claws and weapons. With their backs against each other, Penn and Verge fought them all. When Verge punched a fox in the gut and took its axe, she tossed it to Zero, who swung it at a fox's feet, letting it dodge that while his ripped ears took him up and tosses him away. He bashed two foxes' heads against the other, kiched one in the gut, and punched one in Verge's direction, and she kicked its head face-first into the ground.

"We've gotten better since the last time we were here!" Penn called out happily as he slapped another fox.

Verge laughed as her elbow hit a fox that was coming up from behind her, and her fist socked his chin. "Yeah, pretty much!"

She could say it now, maybe. Maybe if she said it while they were distracted, he wouldn't take it so seriously. "Zero, about that thing I'm supposed to tell you!"

"Is it important?" Penn shouted back, belly-slamming another fox.

"Well, depends how you look at it!"

"What is it?"

Verge flew into the air, her wings flapping harder and faster so a bunch of foxes would be blown away. She could hear Rippen screaming curses at his soldiers. "I…I just want you to know—_Watch out!"_

One of the foxes that was being blown away nearly hit Penn. But luckily, the bunny picked him right up and began tossing him in the air. Just as he was doing that, the MUHU in his pocket suddenly acted up, and a holographic screen, showing Vonnie, appeared.

"Oh, hi Mom!" Penn chirped, tossing the fox aside, and Verge flew over.

"Mrs. Vonnie! Oh no!"

"Wait, are you hanging on for dear life over a pit of lava?"

"Yes," the woman answered, a strain in her tone. "But, everything's fine!"

"It doesn't seem so," Verge said slowly. She looked to her right and instantly turned smaller.

A fox charged in out of nowhere, but punched it away easily. "Verge is right so, are you sure?" The fairy grew bigger, body-slamming another fox to the ground.

"Actually, I'm," Vonne was gasping. "trying to save your father from the belly of a giant fire-breathing chicken, in a volcano." She continued to wheeze, and Penn and Verge could only stare sadly. "W-what if I can't do it…what if I never see him again?" The look in Vonnie's eyes was so mournful and heart-breaking, Verge wanted to cry.

"Mrs. Vonnie…don't think that."

"Mom," the bunny said gently. "I know it looks bad, but, you always come through because _you _are a great hero, and great heroes _never give up."_

Verge nodded, smiling as she flapped her wings, blowing more foxes away from them. "You taught us that, remember?"

Penn grinned and whipped other foxes with his ears. "Which is why we're never gonna give up until we save you and Dad! But we can't do that until you save Dad from the chicken!"

"You're in the Most Dangerous World Imaginable, and you've conquered many other things!" Verge said, as Penn let her roll over his back again, to kick two more foxes. "This setback will definitely not face someone like you, Mrs. Vonnie!"

The redheaded woman looked ready to cry. "You're a smart boy, Penn, you know that? And Verge, you sweet sweet creature…"

"We gotta go! We love you, Mom!" Penn said, and he punched two foxes on either side of him down. "Now go get Dad!"

Verge was shutting the MUHU off and using her wing to slice at a fox as she said, "Good luck Mrs. Vonnie!"

As the conversation ended and the screen disappeared, the words resonated in her. She kept on giving up on telling Penn what she truly wanted to tell him in fear of so many things. Their friendship breaking, their lives torn apart…she didn't want to lose Penn. But even in small situations like this, she knew. She couldn't keep stalling. She should have more faith. Surely hers and Penn's bond would be strong enough to get over anything…

"_Verge!" _

The fairy snapped out of the daze she didn't know she was in to see a fox charge headfirst at her. She didn't have time to move away.

But Penn hopped in just in time, arms in a cross across his chest as the fox's head collided with his stomach. "Zero!" Verge cried out, horrified.

The bunny, however, looked unfazed and smirked. "Come on, with these abs?" He pulled back and saw the fox rubbing his head, lowly howling in pain. "He's the one you should be worried about!"

Verge smirked and kicked the fox's face, sending him up in the air and away from them.

The fight continued for a while longer, with Sashi actually doing most of the work in bruising the foxes and Boone and Hogarth running away. Finally, all the foxes were much too wounded to continue, so they all whimpered and ran off, their tails in between their legs. Rippen, in his form of the Animal World, growled as he followed his army, and Larry ran beside him.

"_I'll get you soon, Penn Zero!"_

"He's not the only one here!" Verge yelled, once again.

The quad gathered, Hogarth included, and beamed at each other. "Good job, guys!" Penn said proudly. "And by guys, I mean Sashi and Verge, mostly."

"Hey we did a good job too!" Boone protested.

"Good job at running away," Verge slapped Boone's back, laughing, but the owl only rubbed his shoulder.

"Verge, _ow."_

* * *

When the four got zapped right back, they bumped fists. "Quadruple fist bump!" they exclaimed.

"Super easy mission," the part-time Wiseman hummed as he stepped off the platform.

Sashi glared. "You didn't do anything!"

"Did too!"

Penn just shook his head and turned to Verge. "What was it you were gonna say, Verge?"

The fairy opened her mouth. "Uhh…" She looked to see Phyllis – still reading her magazine apparently – and then at her two arguing friends a few feet away, before glancing back at Penn. "Let's do this at home instead, huh?"

"Aww, come on, Verge, why can't we know too?" Boone complained, suddenly listening to them.

The fairy only began pushing Penn out the door, before patting his and Sashi's shoulders. "You know. I don't tell you everything."

* * *

When they got home, they were delighted to know Brock was back out of the chicken, safe and sound (mostly). The couple gathered at their cabin's dining table, and Verge was pleased to see their anniversary flowers, daffodils, placed prettily in a skull vase. They held tall wine glasses, and in hers and Penn's end, the two held up glasses of milk.

"Happy anniversary, Mom and Dad!" Penn said, smiling.

"Here's to another year of your love!" Verge raised her glass higher.

The couple, meanwhile, were too busy gazing into each other's eyes. "Happy anniversary, honey," Brock cooed.

"You too, sweetie," Vonnie beamed. "It's perfect."

The adults clinked their glasses, the two kids clinked theirs, and they began to drink. But Brock and Vonnie began to stare dumbfounded at their new friends behind them – a robot dragon and a little monster with his mouth where his head should be and his eyeball where his stomach should be. They two were making out, and the sight made Verge want to vomit like the stars in that dimension.

"Oh no. You make a really weird couple," Brock commented.

The little monster pulled away, his mouth-head pulled into a grin. "Thank you buddy! How can I not love that face?"

The two were nuzzling for a while until the robot dragon bird thing brought its beak down on the monster and began to chew on him. If Vonnie didn't smack the robot, the monster would've been its next meal.

Still, the monster just said, "She's really hungry. Emotionally hungry."

* * *

That night, as Penn and Verge were getting ready for bed, the fairy was sitting in her matchbox bed, staring as Penn buttoned his shirt up. He climbed into his own bed and pulled up the covers, ready to sleep. "Good night, Ver—"

"Zero, wait." The brunette fairy grew bigger and she sat at the edge of the mattress, a distressed expression among her. "I need to talk to you."

"Oh, shoot, right," The redhead got right out of bed and sat at the edge of the mattress beside her. "What is it, Vergie? You're getting me worried. I keep thinking this is something really important."

Her blue orbs stared into his. "Well, it's important to me. Not so sure how much it will be to you."

"Come on, Verge." Penn took his friend's hands in his and squeezes them gently. The fairy stared down, but Penn just continued to look at her calmly. "I know you like to keep your secrets but you know, you can tell me anything."

And this is exactly why she was so afraid of saying what she was about to say now. What if he couldn't accept it? What if things only got worse from here on out…

But, when Verge looked at Penn, a small part of her told her otherwise.

"Zero…" she started slowly. "The truth is…"

Penn stared, waiting, growing a bit impatient deep inside, but tried not to crack. This seemed very hard for Verge to say. Then finally, she said it:

"The day you found me was one of the best and worst days of my life. I was saved, though I knew I lost someone I loved dearly. But you, the one who saved me, gave me a home, a new family, and I liked to call you my brother, someone whom I could love until I could find my real parents. But as time passed, I knew I could no longer see you as such. You've become so much more than just my roommate, my brother, my saviour, my best friend. Penn, I realized I love you so much more than you could ever imagine, and I knew that no matter what happens I'd like to live my forever with you."

This was one of the most beautiful confessions Penn has ever heard – the only one he'd ever heard actually, but he was actually delighted to know it was coming from Verge. The brunette's pale cheeks were flushed, but her gaze on Penn was firm, her blue eyes full of passion. It was definitely a sight to see, a sight meant for Penn only. The redhead could almost cry. But he could only smile. And the more she talked, the more he smiled.

"Wow," the boy said breathlessly. "Why did you suddenly decide to…"

"We're so close to finding your parents, Zero. I just…I thought you had the right to know."

"How long—"

"I don't know. But I've felt it for a while. I swear to you, it's more than just a crush, it's—"

"I don't doubt you for a second."

Verge looked away, her blue eyes looking like they would shed water. "Are…are you thinking of anything weird…?"

And just like that, Penn took Verge into his arms and engulfed her in the biggest, warmest hug. The fairy gasped, but instantly hugged back, and they fitted into each other, staying like that as Penn smiled into her hair.

"You adorable little fairy," he teased. "I've always loved you, as well. I didn't want to…you know…ruin anything. I know how you feel now. But I'm so happy you told me this…"

Her grip on him tightened. "Are you for real?"

"Yes, I'm for real."

He pulled away and smiled at her again, his face so close to hers they could've touched noses. Verge's blush deepened and she did want to keep holding him.

But then she looked away. "There's more, Zero."

"More?" he echoed. "What could possibly top this?"

"I honestly didn't even consider you saying you would love me back," The fairy laughed lightly. "Believe me, I'm thrilled, and I do love you but…"

"…But…?"

"But I know all you're focused on right now is your parents."

Penn's shoulders visibly slumped. It's true. He worried day and night about his mom and dad, they were always on his mind. He tried not to show it to his friends, but he should've known Verge would see right through him.

"Do you think I won't be a good boyfriend or anything?" Penn blurted out. "Hey, you don't have to worry about that, I could treat you like the princess you are – literally and metaphorically—"

"No, Zero, it's more than that. I truly want us to focus on your parents."

"…Oh," was the only thing that Penn was able to say.

Verge reached out to cup his cheek. She smiled softly. "I miss them as much as you do. I, like you, won't stop at anything to get them back. For the time being, I want this to be our top priority; not each other. It could give us more time to decide if, we truly are meant to be together."

Penn touched her hand that was holding his face and leaned closer. He was frowning, but Verge was right. She usually was. "You're absolutely sure…?"

"Yes, Penn. Don't you agree with me?"

For a long time, Penn wanted to be with Verge as much as she had wanted to be with him. But something did always stop him. It was one of the things that she was mentioning, that was stopping them now. But regardless if he agreed with her or not, he trusted her judgement. He respected her wishes.

"You know I don't deserve you," Penn whispered.

"I know," Verge joked, and winked. "Please wait a bit longer, Penn."

She reached up and quickly kissed his forehead before going smaller and flying over to her matchbox. Penn stared at his wall for a while, her kiss lingering, before whirling to his table.

"Can you sleep beside me again? Like before?"

Verge blinked. She'd just asked that he wait a bit longer, and suddenly he was being so forward? Though, the look in Penn's eyes knew that he wouldn't do anything, and it would just be like old times anyway. When they were friends.

She happily flew over, growing bigger as she did, and tucked herself right in, lying on her side so she could face her friend. She could easily get a good view of Penn's red face, and it was the last thing she saw before closing her eyes.

Suddenly, an arm wrapped around her waist and a pair of soft lips pressed against her own. Verge was shocked but she didn't open her eyes. Instead, she kissed back. Penn tasted like milk and a hint of cinnamon. Tiny fairies fluttered in her stomach, as she had dreamed of this moment for the longest time, and it seemed to last forever. She didn't want to pull away.

But when Penn finally did, Verge opened her eyes to see his were closed. But no doubt a smile crept up on his face, and so did one on Verge.

She'd never felt so happy.

The two fell asleep, with Verge nestled against Penn's chest, and the boy's arm protectively around his fairy princess.

* * *

**REALLY HOPE YOU GUYS LIKED THIS CHAPTER DESPITE IT BEING SHORT**

**Small shoutout to Charr777, really hope this last scene satisfies you ;)**

**Hoping I get to write again soon guys! Sorry ONCE AGAIN for not updating, but I really tried my best with these three chapters! Hope ya'll aren't so disappointed **


	23. Trading Faces

**Episode 20: Trading Faces**

* * *

**Tbh I really wanna draw the kiss scene but how **

**_ALSO PLEASE READ THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT!_ Please answer the poll in my profile! Results may or may not determine how I'm going to end this fanfic**

* * *

"I can't believe it!" Brook was squealing as she jumped up and down. "I can't believe you guys are together!"

"I can't believe it took you this long," Lance added bluntly.

Verge's cheeks turned red. "W-we're not in an official relationship yet—"

"Did I hear relationship." As the three art club members walked down the halls to Brook and Lance's next class, Lena's head popped out from the classroom she was in, purposely disrupting her lesson to get in the conversation.

"Verge finally confessed last night," Lance told her, shrugging.

"I'm sorry, _what?!" _

Gloria's head appeared on top of Lena's, and her hazel eyes were as wide as Lena's brown ones. _"Um, why didn't you tell us?!_

Verge held her hands. "Guys, it was just last night! And you should be in class—"

"What was just last night?" Cit appeared as well, his tall figure towering over his club members. He looked ready for his PE class.

"Verge confessed to Penn!" Brook cried.

Cit gasped, and Lena and Gloria began fangirling until a teacher's voice from their room shouted, "Miss Buchanan! Miss Balsa! Take your seats!"

The girls groaned but Cit laughed. "Ya'll can scream all you want and draw Vergenn fanart later."

Lena and Gloria retreated and Lance, who had his palms on the side on his face, uncovered his ears. "Can we please get to class?"

Brook giggled and pulled the dark-haired boy away to their classroom a few doors away. "See you guys later!"

Cit and Verge waved at them and then at each other. The blue-haired male went straight to the gym and Verge headed to the art room.

When she entered, she saw Rippen with her friends, holding the gravy boat Penn said he would work on. Why on Earth would he draw a gravy boat was a mystery to Verge, but the grumpy art teacher could care less about why he made it.

"In all my years teaching art, this is by far the saddest gravy boat I've ever seen!" He brought a hammer out and hit the piece twice, shattering it to pieces. "Z minus!"

"That's not even a grade!" Penn protested.

"You're not even a grade."

Verge huffed and walked to Penn, who held his broken sculpture now, and quickly hugged his waist. "I thought it was lovely."

When Penn smiled at her, the fairy swore she would've kissed him. But then, the PA speaker began to sound out and everyone heard Principal Larry's voice. _"Good morning students! Just a quick reminder that tomorrow is Bring-Your-Teacup-Elephant-To-Work-If-You-Have-One Day! I don't know about you, but I can't wait to bring in my little Tony!"_

At that, Rippen let out a sigh.

"_Mr. Rippen, are you sighing and staring at the loudspeaker with disdain again?"_

"Wait what the dust—"

"It's none of your business!" Rippen shouted.

"He can't hear you," Sashi said.

"_I don't need to." _Larry replied.

Verge deadpanned. "Seriously though, how—"

* * *

In their next mission, the four returned to the Hues and Drabs world, and some kind of race was going on. As they got closer to the finish line, the heroes were struggling since Rippen was ahead, and it seemed like he was going to get there first.

He laughed evilly and looked behind him. "I'm about to win!"

Penn tried to run faster and he and Rippen had a slap fest. But Rippen only ran faster.

"This time nothing will stop me—"

Rippen spoke too soon. Not only did Verge decide to pick Penn up and throw him to the finish line, but Larry on some kind of fox tackled him to the ground, making him lose either way. Penn, dizzy but victorious, pumped his fists in the air, while Rippen lay on the ground, annoyed.

* * *

"Nice work tossing me over Verge!" Penn exclaimed, ruffling the brunette's hair after they were lowered back onto the platform.

The fairy giggled and Boone scoffed. "Wouldn't have made any difference! Larry helped us either way."

Penn laughed and gave Verge a quick hug. It was fast, but she was able to hug him back and bask in his love for a while. But when they pulled away, Boone and Sashi were smiling, almost smirking.

"You guys have been pretty huggy lately," Sashi noted.

"Which is funny, since just a few days ago you guys were practically ignoring each other," Boone added.

Penn rubbed the back of his head. "Let's just say, fights can make two people closer than ever." He winked at Verge.

She winked back.

* * *

After another peaceful sleep, the next day came, and Verge was walking the halls again. Lena and Brook had pulled her aside to squeal again, Gloria started asking if Penn was to be her next fairy king (a question Verge didn't confirm nor deny), and Cit asked if he could design invitations for the wedding. It took a while before she made it to the art room, where Lance stepped out.

"Lance!" Verge beamed. "Hello."

"Hey, Verge," the boy greeted, his black backpack slung over one shoulder and a couple of spray paint cans in a plastic bag was in his other hand. "Just came to pick up stuff for our next meeting. Also hey, the art teacher/your part-time villain is acting weirder than usual."

"Rippen? Why, what's wrong with him?"

"I don't know, but I don't like it. Then again, never liked him either way. Or any teacher for the matter." Lance shrugged and waved before walking off. "Catch ya later."

"See you," Verge murmured, before she entered the room.

She walked in and saw Alex walking away with a metal pelican statue. Then she saw Rippen talking to Matilda, and she squinted at her drawing of…her and Penn getting married? After Rippen suddenly said "Love it!" (what?), Verge approached the glasses-wearing girl.

"Um," She pursed her lips together. "You're Penn's friend ri—"

"Back off, he's taken." It happened in a flash, Verge walked right past the girl and whispered, ever so softly, the words into her ear. She walked over to Penn, not seeing Matilda's shocked, attacked face.

Verge walked over to hear Rippen talk about owning a gravy boat…with a smile on his face? Penn looked at her and Sashi, who both shrugged.

Then, the PA system sounded again. _"Attention students. Volleyball tryouts are after school. Also, due to no other reason that I have the power to do so…detention for everyone!" _Larry began to laugh maniacally, and everyone in the room groaned.

Rippen walked back to his desk and Penn watched, his brow raised. "This is strange…"

"Lance gave me a very cryptic warning about this too," Verge muttered.

The redhead walked over to Rippen, who was no seated behind his desk, looking smug. "Hey uh, Rippen. I was just wondering is that your hair, or did a skunk explode on your head?"

The art teacher looked up at his spiky hair and began to laugh. "It does kinda look like that, doesn't it? My hair's actually really soft. Do you wanna touch?" Then he cracked his neck, extending it towards Penn, whilst making the boy move backward.

"No…I'm good…" The boy returned to his friends and whispered, "Have you noticed Rippen's acting a little…Larry-like?"

They looked back to the man, who was now _knitting a sweater. _"I've only been here less than five minutes and yes, I can agree," the fairy replied.

"Larry?"

"Great detective work, Penn!" Rippen – Larry, as it appeared to be – showed off the sweater he had. On it was a picture of Larry's head on Rippen's body and Rippen's head on Larry's. "It happened when we zapped back yesterday! I'm actually Larry."

"Well, pluck off my wings and call me human," Verge, like everyone else, looked stunned.

Larry gasped. "Know what? Phil is on his way back over here to switch us back! Wanna come watch?"

"Uh, yeah!" Penn said, grinning.

They all walked to the principal's office together, and all but Larry was shocked at how quickly the part-time villain managed to turn his part-time minion's office into his personal lair. The desk was decorated with skulls, the lights on the walls looked like scepters, a picture frame with the word "Evil" was hung, and the principal's chair now had a villainous touch to it. "Oooh, I love what you've done with the place, Rippen, whoop whoop!" Larry only cheered.

Rippen finally revealed himself holding Tony in his lap, laughing maniacally as he tried to spin in his chair to face his guests. But because of his small body, he was unable to give off the evil overlord look he was trying to pull off. He grumbled "Stupid chair" as he adjusted himself to a position he was comfortable with and began stroking the teacup elephant. "So you've told Penn Zero and his stooges. Wonderful."

"This is the greatest thing we have ever seen," Penn said breathlessly. "And we zap into different dimensions every day!"

At that moment, Phil entered the room, a sort of case in his hand. "Alright, let's re-switch body fast," he announced. "I am missing lunch rush on Fish Stick on a Stick." He brought out what looked like a long hose from inside the case.

"Oh!" Rippen said. "That's the body switcher? May I?"

The evil mechanic walked over to the principal's desk and gave it to Rippen. As soon as he got hold of it, he laughed evilly, jumped to the picture behind him (there was a kitten hanging over a shark with the caption "Hang in there…or don't…" over it and it made Verge sad), and moved it to reveal a safe hidden behind it. Rippen instantly began tossing the body switcher inside. "I just asked to see it so I could lock it away! I don't wanna switch back anymore!"

As the small man continued to speak, a scale model of a new Middleburg High began to lower and set atop the desk. "I've realized that being principal is almost as good as being a full-time villain. Behold, future Middleburg Central High, the first intentionally evil school in America!"

Boone walked over, amazed. "Look! There's me, Verge, and Sashi!" He didn't seem to notice that the tiny figures of them were chained up on the walls.

Rippen smirked at Penn. "Don't worry, Penn. I haven't forgotten about you." The Penn figure was encased in plaster, and placed in a room that was labelled, "Permanent Detention". The new principal began to laugh more, and Verge gasped, more concerned at what would happen to Penn than her.

Penn, despite being worried himself, squeezed her shoulder in reassurance. They would find a way out of this.

* * *

Rippen had ushered the five out after, as it was now lunch time, and they all sat together at a lunch table. Larry in Rippen's body began itching as soon as he sat down.

"I was really excited about being Rippen but, his body's so itchy!" Even Boone and Verge began helping the man scratch in different places. "I don't wanna be this itchy forever!"

"Don't worry, everybody," Penn said, standing. "We're gonna turn this around. Here's the plan. We wait until Rippen is out of his office, then we'll have to get past the hall monitor, Mr. Egsgard. Larry's excruciating story will give _us _time to climb into the vents."

"Oh you should probably watch out for the high-tech security system in my office," Larry warned. "The alarm goes off immediately if it detects the _slightest _weight change on the floor."

"Why do you have a security system that severe?" Verge asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Who knows who'd want to steal my belongings!"

"I can think of literally no one."

"And Verge, I made sure to install an extra wing-detection system especially for you."

"Wait, _what? _Larry, why would I—"

"Who knows~!"

* * *

They began to execute the plan. Larry walked right up to Mr. Egsgard, saying "Oh heyyy Mr. Egsgard! Have I ever told you about my gravy boat—"

As he spoke, Penn snuck in the vents, with Verge and Boone following, and Sashi having to push Boone's large bottom in to make him fit. Once they reached the point behind the principal's desk, they removed the ceiling tile and peered down at the office room. "We'll have to lower one of us down," Sashi confirmed.

"Stupid Larry and his stupid untrustworthiness," Verge grumbled.

"I think Penn's the lightest," Boone put in.

"What? I have a fast metabolism!" he protested.

Verge handed over some rope she'd borrowed from Lance ("Don't ask why I have it," he had hissed.), and Penn tied it around his waist. The three lowered the redhead down, just before the picture, and he moved it away before proceeding to guess the safe code. Penn was so focused that he began to sweat, and a bead of it began to fall off the side of his face.

Verge, Boone, and Sashi gasped.

Luckily, Penn managed to move quickly and catch the drop with his tongue, just before it hit the floor.

Verge, Boone, and Sashi cringed.

"Okay, I'll just try Lady Starblaster's birthday, for some reason I know that," Penn muttered, twisting the knob. By luck, he heard a sound, and grinned. "Got it!" He managed to open the safe door…but the machine was nowhere in sight.

"Empty?"

A sound went off, and the wall before him and the desk behind him lowered to reveal that room he was in was fake all along. Rippen turned in his seat, laughing again, but the seat turned more times than he hoped for, just like earlier. "Looking for—ah…looking for—oh…looking for this—" He slammed his hands on the desk and held up the hose-like machine. _"Looking for this?"_

"Oh wings," Verge cursed.

"When did you have time to install a fake wall in here?" Penn questioned, releasing himself from the rope.

"That was actually already here."

Verge flew down to Penn and then Boone came after, screaming as he fell. A parachute spread out, covering him. Sashi jumped down, using his body as a safe place to land. "I told you you needed more height to use that parachute."

"How'd the parachute work, Boone?" Larry in Rippen's body walked in, smiling.

"Pretty good! Except for the blood."

Penn refocused on the man behind the desk. "Hand over the body switcher, Rippen—but I mean Larry!"

Pressing a button, Rippen answered, "How about no?"

A coach appeared from behind a wall and slammed against the five's backs. They tried to wriggle but found they couldn't get out. "What the dust?!" Verge cried.

"What did you do to this couch?!" Sashi shouted.

"I coated that couch in a quick-drying glue!" Rippen jumped onto the desk.

Penn continued to struggle. "It's the old glue-the-couch-hidden-in-the-wall trick! Should've seen it coming!"

The small man walked over to Penn, speaking as he put the body switcher on his forehead. "Now, I'm going to switch Penn's body with a common potato!" He laughed and placed the other end of the body switcher on the vegetable.

"No!" the redhead cried. "I don't wanna be a starch!"

"Tonight, I dine on baked Penn-tato with butter!" His hand hit the potato as he laughed, and the spud rolled underneath the desk. Rippen bent to pick it up, muttering, "Still getting used to having shorter arms…"

As her friends continued to struggle, Verge suddenly remembered she was wearing her vest this whole time. She wriggled some more until her vest came off and her blue sleeves ripped off her shirt. She made a mental note to make a new vest later. She looked to Larry and saw that he was communicating with Tony in elephant. He had probably succeeded because the mammal was obeying. When Larry noticed Verge's free hand, he whispered, "Get ready."

When Rippen stood up again, he placed the potato in position again. "Sorry for the wait everyone. The potato rolled way under the desk, with these shorts arms, it's kinda hard to _reach _for something. I don't think I have to explain."

He laughed, ready to press the button on the switcher's remote. But just before he did, Tony made Rippen trip and fall back. Tony got the end of the switcher off the potato and placed it on Rippen with Larry's forehead. Verge then quickly plucked the other end off Penn's forehead and placed it on Larry with Rippen's forehead.

"Let's do this!" Boone struggled and squirmed with all his might until all but his boxers and flip flops came off. He slammed his fist on the button, and the machine whirred to life.

Rippen screamed "No!" but it was too late. The bodies were both successfully switched!

The first thing the real part-time villain said was, "Oh, oh, my Rippen body really is itchy." He got out of the couch, ripping right through his clothes, and spoke into the mic for the PA. "Does anyone have any calamine lotion? Bring it to Larry's office!" He kept squirming and began scratching himself, now more defenceless than ever.

"Well, another day saved by the part-time heroes," Verge grinned and used a bit of her water powers to douse off the glue, letting her, Penn, and Sashi be set free.

"I'm so glad I'm not a potato!" Penn cried, giving Verge a hug.

The fairy laughed and hugged back. "Me too."

Remembering where they were, they quickly cleared each other's throats and pulled away. While Larry was too busy telling Rippen what a great principal he could've been, Boone and Sashi just smirked at their friends.

"Guys, you don't need to hide anything," Boone chuckled. "We know."

"You do?" Verge echoed.

"I mean, it was too obvious," Sashi joked, walking over to nudge Verge.

Penn laughed lightly. "Well, whatever you know, delete it from your memory. We're still choosing to be friends until we figure out how this is all going to fit through."

"Ahh, wise thoughts," Boone hummed. "And I should know. Don't worry you two! Everything's going to be alright!" The part-time Wiseman then proudly walked out of the office, still in his boxers and flip-flops.

"Is no one going to tell him he can't just do that?" Penn asked.

Larry was now turned back to his students, smiling. "Thanks for your help today guys! Now if one of you could please get Rippen the lotion he needs, that would be delightful."

Sashi grumbled and began to walk out. "I'll call a janitor."

"Hey, Sash?" The brunette turned to the fairy, who suddenly seemed to have a sheepish look on her face as she rubbed the back of her neck. "I…I hope this is okay."

They were great girl best friends. They shared secrets with each other, they trusted each other with everything. But unlike how some girl friends acted, these two never fought over one guy. "Verge, don't worry about anything." The smile that the Japanese girl gave her friend before she left the room reassured Verge of everything.

"I don't know what that was about," Penn said loudly, cutting in. "but I know you can't go out without your covering. We need to get you a new vest but for now…"

The redhead made this chivalrous move by taking the first layer of clothes off, leaving chain mail as the next shown layer, and putting his Zero shirt over Verge's head. The fairy didn't stop him, but she was shocked. "But, this is the gift from your parents."

"It's temporary! Until we sew you a new vest." The redhead winked a cyan eye, and Verge blushed.

"Thanks Zero. Good job today, hero."

"You too, fairy guide."

He held his arm out to her and she took in gingerly. They then walked out of the office together.

* * *

**I would've uploaded this sooner but I went on a camping trip!**

**GUYS OMGODS ONLY TWO MORE EPISODES LEFT BEFORE THE FINALE!**

**Remember, please leave a review, a favourite, and please answer the poll in my profile! Thank you!**


	24. 13 Big Problems

**Episode 21: 13 Big Problems**

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**Well I clearly know what to do for the finale now but I'm still putting up the poll for you guys to answer :D **_**Also PLEASE READ THIS AGAIN THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT**_

**I just want you guys to know that despite me saying I don't know how to end this fanfic, I've actually been planning it for months. I wrote those last few parts only because I wanted to satisfy my favourite reader (you know who you are 3). She has always been there for me and I truly appreciate everything she has done already. You guys can have your opinions on Verge x Penn, and have your **_**suggestions**_** but **_**don't**_** guilt-trip me into ending the story on how you like : ) I for a fact kinda like Verge x Penn, don't bash on other people's opinions. This story, like every other story, will eventually end in the way the author wants it to; just like how a cartoon or TV show ends in the way the creators want it to. You can like it or hate it, but don't all of a sudden bash on the whole thing or decide you don't like this, okay?**

**Thank you, my ridaas, and I do really hope you understand where I'm coming from ^^ Now on with the chapter!**

* * *

"Thank you very much for visiting us, Gloria," King Lauqui shook hands with the purple fairy, grinning from ear to ear. "We very much look forward to seeing you again, as well as your parents."

Gloria smiled back, with Verge looking giddier than usual. "Thank you for allowing me to come, Your Highness!"

"Of course," Queen Lareon nodded. "Our Fairy World will always look for ways to unite more fairy kingdoms together!"

"I'll be sure to visit Balsa soon, Mom," Verge promised. "But right now, I've got work to do!"

"Divergent, I hope you decide to make your choice soon," the King suddenly said.

"I'll figure it out, Dad, promise. I just...don't see a need to do it yet." Her parents had been pestering her about what she was going to do about whether or not she chose to be the loyal fairy princess she needed to be forever. She still couldn't bring herself to put an end to her adventures with her and her friends yet, though, so she kept stalling time.

She brought her MUT out and Gloria put a hand on her shoulder. The brunette fairy looked back to her parents, who now had worried faces. "See you for dinner, Mom and Dad."

* * *

When the fairies returned to Middleburg, their tiny selves flew closer to the Odyssey so they wouldn't be seen. Gloria turned to Verge, smiling again. "It was cool for your parents to give me a tour around your world!"

"Heh, yeah! I'm glad you could come. And I can't wait to see Balsa!"

"Oh definitely, my Mom and Dad would be ecstatic to see you! By the way, are your parents forcing you into an arranged marriage? Mine aren't so strict, thankfully, but is this choice they're asking you to do about that?"

"Well, no," Verge hesitated. "It's not about that. It's something else...also, I haven't told them about Penn yet."

"Hmm…" Gloria rubbed her chin. "Whether or not they do, do you think they'd ever be okay with you two?"

Verge hesitated more. In truth, she wasn't even sure. And the other reason why she didn't want her and Penn to be in a relationship was because, how exactly would a human and a fairy princess work out? "I'm not sure," she said finally.

"Oh, Vergie, the only way is if you cut off your wings. Are you really going to?" Gloria's expression was a mix of different emotions. She looked very concerned, both as a fellow fairy and as a dear friend. She also looked stern, as if daring Verge to answer. Although her worry dominated her face, the brunette could detect it, and was feeling more clueless than ever.

"Whatever happens, I'll be sure not to be stupid." She reached over, taking Gloria in her arms, and giving her fairy friend a big hug. Gloria hugged back immediately.

"That's good… Well, have a nice day at work!" The dark-haired fairy brought her own MUT out, ready to head to her own dimension. "See you tomorrow!"

Verge waved as Gloria disappeared. When she did, she grew bigger and walked inside the Odyssey. There, she saw the grand piano, the giant heart with Phyllis' name in it, and Boone spread out on the piano, wearing a baby blue tuxedo underneath another sign with Phyllis' name on it, and an expression that read "This is going to work". Boone had told his friends about his part-time Wiseman report card and how his parents were going to take away his flip-flop collection if he didn't shape up. Verge walked over to the seat beside Sashi. "Alright, let's get this over with."

"I'm still not cool with this," Sashi grumbled.

Phyllis then entered the room and was surprised to see the whole set-up. Old Man Middleburg began to play the piano, and Boone began to sing.

_~"Miss Phyllis is totally the best_

_That's something I wanna get off my chest_

_A bird chair is often called a nest~_

'_Boone, why," _Verge thought.

With one click of a button, the whole setup was taken away, and Boone yelped when a metal claw grabbed him by the collar of his suit and made him slide out of it. "Buttering up Phyllis will not fix report card," Phyllis said, climbing the stairs to her MUT controls. "You must step up game."

"I step up game all the time!" the boy protested. "Right guys?"

Penn looked up, proceeding to recite the line Boone gave him. "I think Boone is a fairy tale prince wrapped in a mansuit of smart and handsome."

Sashi, who didn't even bother memorizing, read the piece of paper she was given and spoke in a half-monotone voice. "Women love Boone, men wanna be him."

Verge brought out her own piece of paper from her pocket, never even reading it before just now. "I love Boone more than I love—Boone what."

The boy only grinned widely and gave them all two thumbs up.

But Phyllis was unfazed and started the MUT up. "If better report card you want, then better you must be. Luck good!"

* * *

"Yeah! We're monsters again!" Penn shouted, flames shooting from his mouth. _"We're monsters! Monsters in the hoooooooouuu—"_

"_Hey!" _Boone reached up to clamp Penn's snout closed. "No torching the town!"

"This is so unfair!" A tiny voice squeaked. The green, scaly monster looked up to see Verge, who had been flying above him, and was no settling on his claw. "Why am I small again?!"

"Awww don't worry Vergie, we'll keep you safey," Penn teased. "But also, Boone, don't worry—"

"I gotta nail this so I can get a better report card! No screw-ups people—"

But when he took a step, he realized he'd stepped on a statue. In a panic, he picked up the remains and ate it.

"Did you just stuff the memorial sculpture of monster-human peace and prosperity into your mouth?" Sashi questioned.

"No…but if I did, it needs ketchup."

"Awww Boone, you're paranoid," Verge said sweetly.

"Look Boone, relax, okay? We're gonna get you through this," Penn reassured. "Sash, check the Specs!"

"We have a simple mission," she replied. "Capture the newborn monsters and get them to the nursery before they attack the city and end monster-human peace forever."

That's when Boone began to groan and whine and hold his head. "Ohh, gosh!" He fell to the ground and began taking deep breaths, groaning and holding the horn on his head.

"Boone?" Penn asked, exchanging a look with Sashi.

Verge squeaked, flying over. "Are you…okay—"

The red monster cried out as some things shot right out of his horn. "Boone?!" His friends cringed at the sight.

When the items landed on the ground beside the town, they appeared to be giant, monster eggs. And as soon as they emerged, they began cracking, to reveal tiny baby monsters that looked like Boone and had the most adorable smiles.

"Awww," the part-time heroes gushed.

Verge was the only one that squealed just as loud as Boone had been crying out.

But those smiles were wiped away as soon as they appeared. The baby monsters were rabid and waddled towards Penn with ferocious expressions. They ran around, acting wild, and Verge only flew up higher, no longer finding this cute.

"Stop it!" Penn scolded.

"Bring it!" Sashi challenged. "I'll fight a baby!"

"No, Sash!" Verge shouted. "They're too young!"

"Come back and fight!"

"Come on little babies—"

Verge had tried to reason out with the newborn monsters. But instead, the babies kept slapping her away, making her shout "Ow, ow" each time, before they began to run off towards another direction. Boone watched in horror.

"They're gonna wreck the city! I can't lose my flip-flops for this!" The horned monster began to wail and throw rocks and collapse on the ground in a fit.

Penn, who now had Verge in his hand again, walked over. "Uh, Boone? Buddy? Breathe. _Breathe." _His best friend rolled onto his back and took a breath. "There you go. Look, Sashi and I are gonna get your monkey babies and you, _you _are gonna do the most important job of all time. We need you – get this – to clean up all these eggshells! _What? What? All of them? Ahh, Booone! Can you do it?"_

"I can do that!" he insisted. "Thank you for believing in what I bring to the table."

"Don't worry, you won't be alone anyway, Verge can stay safely with you and help! Unless of course, you'd rather be a monster toy and used as bait—"

"Nope, staying here."

"Well, gotta get going. Gotta go save the world, and you got your eggshells, so, got that to do…"

Sashi picked Penn up and they flew off, into the city. Verge flew to where the babies were hatched. "Boone, don't worry, I'm sure we'll pull through. I know you'll be able to get better grades on your report card! You're a very determined person."

The monster beamed. "You think so?"

"Sure! Now come on, these shells aren't gonna pick them up themselves."

She dusted some with her fairy dust and soon, they floated in the air. As Boone collected other pieces, he gasped in anger after a while. "Wait a second, this isn't a very important job! It doesn't take all day! We're actually already done!"

"Whaaaat noooo." Verge dusted the shells in Boone's arms and they all began to float away. "Wait, why are you mad?"

"They meant to leave me behind, didn't they!"

"That's crazy! Penn and Sashi don't mean to exclude you!"

Boone just grumbled and took off. The fairy followed behind, quickly flying. When they reached the border of the city, they saw their friends had created some kind of giant, web trap, and Penn and Sashi bumped claws.

"We should leave Boone behind all the time!" Penn was saying.

"_I heard that!"_

The giant scaly monster and bug turned to see their horned pal and fairy friend behind them. Verge flew closer, rubbing the back of her head a bit awkwardly.

Penn looked at Boone, worried. "Hey, uh, what are you doing here?"

"_It doesn't take long to clean up eggs!_ And I'm starting to think you gave me a lame job on purpose to make me stay behind!"

"Uhh—"

"Maybe, the reason Phyllis thinks I don't make happy times is because you guys exclude me!"

Boone, out of spite, kicked a golden ball-like statue that was on the ground by his feet. It flew through the air, bounced off the web, and hit Penn and Sashi, tying them up. "Oh no!" Verge cried, flying to try and do something about it somehow, but it was too late. The baby monsters stampeded through and climbed up to the city. They started terrorizing citizens, and causing chaos through the streets.

"Oh wings oh wings," Verge gasped. She didn't bother to untie Penn and Sashi and flew towards a raging Boone. "Come on man, you can't get all upset!"

"You're in this too! You tried to stop me from going to help them!"

"No, Boone!" Verge half-lied. "Look, sometimes things don't go well and it may be because of you but that doesn't mean we don't have any faith in you!"

The monster only took it the wrong was and sat on the floor, sighing in defeat. "All I ever wanted was for everyone to believe in me…"

Verge was about to retort, but gasped when he saw Boone was rolling. A hatch opened up from underneath him and giant missiles began to emerge. They flew to the air and looked ready to descend and hit the city any minute. "What the dust—Boone! We do believe in you!"

Penn, who was still struggling, also spoke up. "Uh, okay, Boone, look. The reason your parents came down on you so hard isn't because they thing you're a screw-up. It's because they love you. Boone, sometimes parents need to use tough love to get their children to do the best."

The horned monster sighed. "Come on, Booney." The fairy looked up in concern at the missiles and then at her friend, smiling. "Who can do this?"

The part-time Wiseman looked at the missiles as well, and then at the brunette, a determined expression now on his face. "Boone can do this!"

He thumped his chest and leaped towards the city. He jumped on buildings until he made one final jump towards the weapons before punching one, using another to take out others, and attacking the rest with his bare hands. He jumped on the last two missiles and used them to fly back to his friends, twirling them successfully before knocking them out as well. Verge hooted while Penn and Sashi beamed.

"Boone!" the green monster cried. "You took out every weapon in the whole city!"

"Yes. I. Did!" the part-time Wiseman cried proudly. "Now if you'll excuse me, I've got some parenting to do."

Boone walked away and Verge flew after. Penn called out, "Uh, Boone? What are we gonna do about these smoldering warheads? Hello?"

"Uh, bomb. Bomb." The last two missiles exploded on Penn and Sashi, covering them in black ash. "…Bomb."

Their fairy friend winced and flew closer to Boone. "That's gonna leave a mark. So what have you got planned, Wiseman?"

The monster smirked. "Tough love!" He stomped his foot and shouted, "_STOP! _About face right now or so help me, I will make you eat brussel sprouts forever!" All the monkey babies were shocked but they put their attention towards their momma. They looked more sad and cuter, but they followed. "Get back to the monster nursery _right now!"_

"Wow!" Verge beamed as she flew high above the babies, making sure they were lined up in a single file and out of the city. She counted and made sure each one was there. "One, two, three…"

"It's because I know you're better than this," Boone was saying. "It's called tough love, juniors."

"I'm proud of you, Boone!" Verge held out her fist, and Boone grinned, happily – lightly - bumping it with his own, giving her a tiny fist bump. "You really saved the day today."

"Thanks, Verge."

She went to fly back to Penn and Boone took care of the kids, and was shocked to see the scaly monster looked ready to sneeze. When he did, spikes flew out of his tail and on the ground. The spikes began to crack as soon as they emerged and tinier, green scaly baby monsters began to pop out, giggling and cooing "Mama". Verge squealed once again, her voice much quieter though, but Penn moaned.

"Ah-haha, I'm a mother!"

Verge giggled, cracked her knuckles, and patted her friend's shoulder. "Come on. Let's get this over with."

Sashi smirked and they got back to work.

* * *

That evening, Verge and Penn spent some time resting in their room before the fairy went off the have dinner in Fairy World. She ate with her parents in the big dining table, and it was clear all was well between them now. They shared stories and laughed over a delicious meal. After dinner, Verge was about to leave, but before she could she got a glimpse of Fairy World from her room's balcony. In the night, the fireflies glinted and the crickets chirped, but she was in awe of how beneath the darkness of the night, was a kingdom she'd learned to know and love.

She was surprised when her father came up from behind her and placed a hand on her shoulder. His awed, loving expression towards the kingdom matched hers. "One day, this will all be yours," he declared. "If you choose to stay, and lead it."

The smile on Verge's face faltered.

**Once again, hope you liked this chapter guys! Please send good word : )**

**I can't believe it's only one more episode until the finale! And I'm pretty excited for Mr. Rippen actually, since I know what to do for it (ish lol). **

**Of course, I'm saving my final author's note until then, but let me just say now that I'm so thankful to all of you guys that keep reading this story! I hope even after this story ends, there will be others that read this fic :) **


	25. Mr Rippen

**Episode 22: Mr. Rippen**

* * *

**So I know I said I was excited to write this…but the reason is because I get to write about two of my OCs, and this is the first time I've given them a scene together! This chapter is super short, but I still like it :)**

* * *

Cit invited Verge to play video games at his place one day at his house. He'd played all the games with the other members of the art club so he figured that while is parents were at work and he didn't feel like going to school today, he could start this tradition with Verge. They were playing mostly fighting games like Super Smash Bros on his Nintendo Switch and Tekken on his PS4. They were having such a fun time that before they knew it, it was an hour before Verge had to go to work.

They'd finished one round of Street Fighter when the taller male exhaled deeply. "I didn't know you were so good at these games, Verge!"

The brunette fairy chuckled. "In truth, neither did I!"

"I'm gonna get some lemonade, you want some?"

"Sure, thanks!"

As Cit retreated to the kitchen, Verge stood from her Indian-sitting position and stretched her wings. There were a lot of pictures around her friend's living room. As far as she was concerned, Cit was an only child, but in some pictures, she saw a little dark-haired girl with her parents, always grinning from ear to ear. The images made Verge smile.

When Cit came back with two glasses, the fairy picked up one frame and held it out. "This your little sister?"

Much to her surprise, the blue-haired boy laughed as he set Verge's glass down and sipped his lemonade. "No, that's me."

This took Verge aback. "Sorry, is 'Me' like, a French name or—"

"You heard right, Verge. I used to be a girl."

The fairy must've looked back and forth from the frame to her friend a dozen times. Strangely enough, the more she looked at both figures, the more she saw the little girl in Cit. "Wow," was the first thing that came out of Verge's mouth. "What—"

Cit crossed his legs on the floor and Verge sat beside him. "When I was young, I always knew something was wr—different about me. I never liked to wear dresses, I didn't like girly things, and as soon as puberty hit, I realized I was into women." The boy tugged at his pink checkered scarf. "I relate to myself as male. I was lucky enough that my parents were very supportive, even though they're still in denial sometimes. They told me to wait until I was 18, a time where they will finally accept that I'm sure of my choices. But right now, they'd let me cut my hair and wear these clothes. Then, I can get surgery and finally feel like what I'm supposed to be."

"That's…awesome, Cit," Verge admitted. "You're so dedicated to what you believe."

"It's my true self," he insisted. "Of course I believe in it. This is what I really am. I'm glad you accept it, Verge."

"Of course I do! You accepted me being a fairy… But Cit, how can you know that, this is truly it?"

Cit smiled gently, as if this was a question he'd been asked a thousand times. "Because I know, deep in my heart, that this is who I was supposed to be. I know it, and no one can take that away from me. It delights me to know that soon, things will all eventually fall into place. I'll be seen as a guy for real, and not only will I have what I want, but I'll finally feel like things will be right."

The fairy never had felt so much respect for a friend than how she was feeling right now. She stared at the blue-haired boy with so much admiration, until a realization began to settle in her heart. Deep down, she knew what was right, as well. She knew what she was meant to be.

She held her glass out to Cit, and he clinked his own against hers with a smile.

* * *

Verge got to work just in time. She zapped with her friends to their new mission and was ecstatic to be back in her pirate clothes. Boone rowed his fins as they floated on the sea. Verge noticed some fishes were swimming before him and was about to point it out but then Penn was taking a deep breath.

"Ahhh, smell that open sea, love me some open sea."

Sashi squawked in response. "I hope your good mood isn't about pirate Maria."

Verge pouted, shrunk to her smaller size, and sat on Penn's shoulder. "Hope you're not even thinking about something close to her."

"Uhh…" The expression on Penn's face looked guilty, but he tried for a smile and poked the fairy's cheek. "Come on. You know I'm not."

The brunette huffed, but smiled lightly.

Sashi looked behind her and her eyes widened. "Penn? Behind you!"

"What, it's Maria? It's Maria, isn't it?"

Verge noticed the dark shadow looming over them, looked behind her, and shrieked. This caught Penn's attention and turned. The dark shadow was being casted by a giant Kraken, and it looked ready to attack!

"You're not Maria! You're a big monster Kraken boat!"

The Kraken roared, lowered a tentacle, and lifted Boone into the air. Verge held onto Penn's coat, and he held onto Boone. The whale boat gasped, feeling whoozy. "You're gonna make me sick!" he cried.

"Uh, Boone?" Penn shouted, slipping. "Tickle it! Tickle it or something!"

The boat began moving his back fin. "One tentacle tickle coming up! _Tickle! Tickle tickle tickle tickle tickle!"_

The monster laughed loudly and eventually dropped Boone back into the water, making him lie on his back. In a hurry, Verge flew to dust Penn, making him float a bit so he could stay dry and safe. "Thanks Verge," he breathed, balancing himself.

"Don't mention it,"

"Penn!" Sashi suddenly gasped, looking at the boy's belt. "Your MUHU is green! There's a shard in this world!"

"Oh wings, yes!" Verge cheered, flying to see the bright glow the device was emanating.

"That's amazing!" Penn exclaimed.

"Zero…"

"But, don't worry. I-I'm not gonna let the shard distract me from the mission this time." Boone slowly began to regain balance, and the Kraken flailed its tentacles, trying to get Penn.

Verge grew bigger, trying to swat it away as Penn lowered himself onto the ground. "Argh, I like animals but not when they attack!"

One tentacle accidentally hit the MUHU, and Penn got to see where the shard he needed was located. "Hey, look! The shard's coming right to us! Okay, okay, I know I said I'd focus on the mission, but we get that shard and we can go right to the Most Dangerous World Imaginable and get my parents back!"

"Zero, we know," Verge said calmly, now trying to use water powers to shield them as the Kraken tried to attack. "But are you sure you're not blind like last time again?!"

"Verge, I'm sure! But first—"

The Kraken tore right through Verge's water shield, and just as she was about to make a new one, its tentacle lifted Boone into the air again. Verge managed to get away and helped Penn and Sashi tried to break free from the restraints of the tentacle as they slowly neared the monster's mouth.

"I love food and now I'm gonna become it!" Boone wailed. "I guess it's kinda neat?!"

"You won't, Wiseman!" the fairy shouted. "We just need some he—"

She was cut off by the sound of the Kraken being hit on the head with a canon, stopping it to look at what shot at him. A familiar dolphin boat was grinning. "Say hello to my little friend! Maria! I'm talkin' 'bout the person, not the cannon."

Sure enough, their old pirate friend was in her talking boat standing proudly beside a cannon. Penn exclaimed, "Maria!", looking happy to see her.

But the Kraken roared again, looking more furious, but Maria the boat leapt into the air while Maria the pirate fired her canon again. It hit the rock arc that was just above the Kraken, and while Boone fell safely back into the water, the rock fell right on top of the monster's head, knocking it back into the sea.

Verge gasped, wanting to cheer, but then Maria dropped in and smiled at Penn. The redhead, although probably enamoured, scowled. "Stay back, Maria! Was this whole rescue just a trick to rip off our goldfish boats? Huh?! Was the Kraken in it? Huh? Talk! Talk, you harpy!" He brandished what was supposed to be his sword. _"Aha! _A feather…"

"Uh, you finished?" Maria asked smugly. Penn lowered his sword-feather in shame. "Okay, good. Don't worry, I'm a good pirate now. You inspired me."

"Well, that's a relief," Verge commented, flying over to stand on Penn's shoulder again.

The redhead suddenly gasped and pointed at the pendant around Maria. Once the fairy saw it, she knew what it was. "Look, Maria, I know this won't make much sense to you but, that pendant is very important to me."

She paused once, but began to take her necklace off. "Say no more, Ponytail. Something about it always made me think of you." Penn smiled, but Verge huffed. Maria then tossed it over. "It's yours."

Just as the redhead was ready to take it, Rippen as Woodbeard came swooping in, grabbing the pendant with his hook by the rope it was hanging on. He laughed as he landed on a netting of the ship. "Your precious shard is mine, Penn Zero. And you'll _never _get it back. Just like you'll _never _get your parents back!"

Penn's expression shifted from anger to worry in a split second.

Rippen began to laugh maniacally, but little did he know that his fairy enemy was on his shoulder until she grew and kicked him in the nose. Verge got the pendant once Rippen went to cover his face in pain. He was about to fall off at the impact but kept his balance. That is, until he lost it again when a great force hit the ship and the part-time villain screamed as he fell off Boone.

"Larry…you did what I asked you to do?"

"Of course! It's your birthday!"

"Happy birthday, Rip!" Verge called out, flying back to Penn as she grew smaller. "But I only have a gift for Zero."

Penn received the shard, grinned wildly, and gave Verge a tiny fist bump.

"Give my regards to the bottom of the ocean!" Maria the boat grabbed Larry's shark tail with her mouth and tossed him into the swirling whirlpool. She approached Rippen next, saying, "Hey creepy wood dude! Happy birthday!" She scooped him up with her snout and spat him out, right after Larry. The villains began to slowly sink into the water. Penn and Verge cheered together.

Thanks to the Marias, they managed to get the goldfish boats safely to school. The little critters were so excited, and Verge gushed, adoring how cute they looked.

"I'll never be able to repay you, Maria," Penn said, holding up the glowing blue shard. "I'm so happy I could—" He cut himself off.

"Do this?" The female pirate moved closer to Penn, a look in her eyes. Verge saw her just in time and let out a tiny, tortured sound.

But just before she could press her lips to Penn, they got zapped back home.

* * *

"Phyllis likes interruption," The mechanic was saying, as she brought the heroes to the ground. Penn didn't show it, but he was furious. "Moreover…"

Verge flew down, trying to let the flush on her cheeks die down, and pointed at the shard in Penn's hand. "Zero! You finally have it!"

The redhead snapped back to reality and held the blue pendant up, happiness flashing in his eyes. "Well, whaddya know…" Boone and Sashi also beamed, looking exultant.

A metal hand snatched the shard up and brought it to Phyllis, who held it up herself and inspected it. A small smile tugged at her lips. "We are ready."

Penn beamed with exhilaration. "I'm going to find my parents…" He looked like he was on cloud nine. When he looked at Verge, she grinned at him, looking almost as excited as he was.

The boy exited the Odyssey, hooting and cheering, with his friends laughing right behind him.

"_Quadruple fist bump!"_ They laughed more and proceeded to get hom.

"That's really dumb," Penn put in.

Verge made him stop in his tracks and stare straight into his cyan eyes. "It's what gives me _joy."_

The laughter died down for a few moments.

* * *

Later that evening, Verge would have celebrated with Penn, but she had instead asked instead gather everyone at his house for a few hours. Everyone would have to bring their own food. Verge brought salad. Soon, for a while, they enjoyed what they had. Gloria liked beating a struggling Lance at Smash Bros every time. Brook and Lena took turns using Cit's tablet to work on a commission. Cit took pictures of everyone and joined the fun.

Even though Verge orchestrated the whole thing, she simply liked watching her newfound friends do their thing. She'd only known these people a few days, but it seemed like she'd known them her whole life.

The fairy found that she really loved them.

"So, why'd you call each of us here, Vergie?" Lena piped up, resting her elbow on Verge's shoulder.

Hearing this, the other art club members turned to her. Verge was dreading this question, but what could she do? It couldn't have been avoided. So she spoke.

"I needed this. You know? Just a quick hang out with some of the greatest people I've ever known."

"Awww Verge you flatter us." Gloria waved a hand, but she was beaming.

"Guys, I hope you know that…no matter what…you're all special to me. And I couldn't ask to be a part of a better club." The smile on her face looked pained.

The five people before her were silent for a moment, until Lance said, "Dude, you act like we're never seeing you again."

Brook put her hand on Verge's other shoulder. "We're happy that we met you too, Verge."

Cit crossed his arms and smiled. "No matter what, we'll always be the art club."

Their smiles warmed Verge's heart.

* * *

Even though she planned it, she had to leave the mini-party early. She wanted to spend her late night with Penn as well. While she was at the party, Penn was just at home, lying in bed, eating, and reminiscing old memories and looking at pictures of him, his parents, and Verge. There was one picture he especially liked; the one his parents just happened to take, as he was trying to cheer up Verge. Her tiny head was poking out of his hair, and she was smiling the brightest smile he had ever seen.

Penn remembered that was the day he first fell in love with her.

He simply loved having memories like that with her.

When she came back from her get-together with her art club friends, they decided to make late-night sandwiches, ate cookies and drank milk, and just sat on Penn's bed and remembered old missions. They talked and laughed and basically just acted like kids.

It was a perfect night for Verge.

"I can't wait to finally get my parents back," Penn finally said.

"I know," Verge said, smiling. "I'm excited too." She paused for a second and went to hug Penn's pillow. "Zero…you know I love you, right?"

"Yeah, you made it clear on this very bed."

"No matter what, okay? I'm always going to love you."

"I know Verge…" The redhead placed a hand on her shoulder. "Is something wrong, Verge?"

The brunette shook her head, smiling wider. "No, of course not."

"You sure? You, you don't wanna talk about it?"

Verge quickly moved to kiss his cheek. Before Penn could even be surprised, she replied, "Everything is perfect. We're going to save your parents. We're going to be okay."

When Penn smiled, Verge liked to believe it would be.

* * *

**Just a heads up guys, I'm planning on dividing the finale into two parts. Also, might take a while before I post the first half because I need a break whew**

**Wow I can't believe this is really happening… Two years ago, I wasn't even planning on continuing this. Now, I'm gonna be writing the finale soon**

**But I guess, like I always say, you should always finish what you started, no matter how long it takes ^_^**

**Four years ago, I also didn't have a boyfriend, and now he's helping me transcribe the last episode of Penn Zero. I love him so much haha **

**But yk, thank you to those have that stuck by this story until the very end :3**


	26. At the End of the Worlds (Part 1)

**Episode 23 (Part 1): At the End of the Worlds**

* * *

**In truth, I almost neglected this HAHAHA I WAS JUST SO BUSY I'M SO SORRY**

**BUT HERE IT IS! The FIRST part of the finale…I still can't believe I'm almost done.**

**My due date is August 1. If I don't finish before then, rip. Sorry :')**

**Hope you like and please give me time until I write the second part ^_^**

* * *

"Guys, _why_ are we filming Zero again?"

"Shhh, you'll miss the screaming."

Verge rolled her eyes at Aunt Rose and just crossed her arms and stayed small.

It's been a few days since they found the last shard they needed. Every night, despite Verge's reassurances, Penn woke up to nightmares and cold sweat. It worried the fairy greatly, but what could she do? Everyone knew this wasn't going to end…until the redhead could actually do what he needed to do.

"_No—NO!"_

"Zero!" Penn was awake now, and Verge flew over to lightly touch his head as soon as it hit the boom mic Uncle Chuck was holding. "Are you okay?"

"Y-Yeah I'm fine," Penn managed, pulling the covers close to him. "But umm, why are you guys filming me while I sleep?"

"That's what I asked!"

"So your parents can catch up on everything you've been doing while they've been gone," Aunt Rose replied.

"Lately, you've been screaming in your sleep a lot," Uncle Chuck said. "It's good stuff."

"Was there another nightmare?" Everyone looked to the stairs and found Boone and Sashi had entered. Despite the worrisome question, they seemed to be smiling.

"Yep," Verge answered, the look on her face showing this was not at all okay.

Sashi didn't get the hint. "I love nightmares. They give me things to punch and kick while I rest."

Penn then sat up more and looked at his friends, all serious-like. "Look, I'm worried about not being able to rescue my parents, okay?" Feeling guilty, Boone and Sashi exchanged a sad look. "How about everybody just files out of my room in an orderly fashion and I can wake up like a normal person."

"You're not normal getting out of bed will continue." Now, Phyllis was leaning on Penn's wall, and Karen and Derek were with her. Karen was also carrying an old man with a walker up the stairs, and roared after she dropped him. Verge didn't mind the old man and just went to pat the bear on the head.

"Uncle Chuck, this is why you need to fix the lock on the front door man!" Penn shouted. But Uncle Chuck and Aunt Rose only zoomed their camera in on the new visitors.

"The broken lock is a big problem but self-doubt is the greatest enemy of all part time heroes," Phyllis continued.

"She's not selling any bad pumpkins," the old man finally spoke up, his voice old-timey and gruff. "That's as true as a pig's knuckle."

The fairy circled his head once, an eyebrow raised. "Pardon, but who is he again?"

"This is first part time hero I ever recruited," the mechanic said.

"The name is Adam Tomkat Badawy! People started calling me Tomkat because I like to drink milk out of a saucer and I like to sharpen my nails on twigs."

"Since you found last shard, you will go rescue parents today. It will be most importance and most dangerous mission ever. _Stop that."_

The camera faced Boone, who had apparently been playing on a keyboard. "Too melodramatic?"

"_No music. Anyway,_ I thought you could use wisdom of old worn out hero. EVERYONE OUT. GO, EVERYONE."

So everyone but Penn and the old man began to exit, and as Phyllis and Verge were the last ones to leave, Penn said, "Wait! C-Can Verge stay? If that's alright."

The fairy and mechanic exchanged a look before Phyllis shrugged. "It's his mission." Verge flew over, sat in Penn's hair to pat it, and Phyllis was gone.

The old part-time hero, Adam, approached Penn in his bed. "Not feeling like you got the turnip truck by the bucket there eh?"

Penn's eyes were squinted. "I didn't understand any of that."

"Same."

Adam paused then brought out a book that said, "Current Sayings." Verge almost choked, saying "I need that."

"Not feeling…confident?"

"Not really," Penn answered slowly. "I've never wanted anything more than getting my parents back and I'm afraid now I'll just mess it up."

Verge flew to hug Penn's cheek and the redhead used his hand to pat her.

"It's totally natural! It all reminds me a very similar situation. I worked at the Men's Used Stockings Factory. They had a contest. Whoever donned the most socks in a week would win a coupon for a bucket of apples. Back in those days, apples were like cotton balls: priceless. Well wouldn't you know it, I donned a full hog's head bushel. By soup, I won that coupon! But on my way to the neighbourhood orchid, a mountain wolf stole it. Well I caught the critter of the roof of the old roof factory but it leaped into a passing hot air balloon. I had the chance to leap myself but I hesitated. I paid dearly for my cowardice. I've never tasted another apple." His eyes welled up and Verge and Penn blinked.

"Someone has issues…"

Penn tried not to laugh. "Well why not? I think we have several apples in the kitchen right now. We have Fuji, gala, honeycrisp— we're actually kind of an apple house."

The redhead chuckled but the old man looked annoyed. "The _point_ of this story isn't to flaunt your fancy apple-filled kitchen! It's to tell you that you need to follow your inner hero. Don't worry about rescuing your parents! Let your instincts take over. If you listen to your inner hero, good things will happen."

"That's, actually good advice." When Penn looked at Verge, the fairy was in awe herself.

"You're not malarkey after all."

Adam took that as a compliment and faced Penn's window. "Wehe-hell, you're not dancin' on a dog's bonnet! And now I got to be going."

His walker turned into some kind of jetpack and the old man flew straight out, forming a whole in Penn's room. The boy and the fairy scurried over, full of shock.

"Okay uh, thanks Adam Tomkat Badawy!"

"_You're paying for repairs!" _Verge shouted.

"Well that old man may have had some weird past but his mind's in the right place, and it got me back on track!" Penn's face, which had been frowning in the morning, was no upside down. "I'll go get changed then let's head to the Odyssey!"

The boy wasabout to head to the bathroom, but then Verge grew bigger and grabbed his wrist. "Wait, Zero! We need to talk too…"

"Huh? What is it, Verge?" The redhead faced her, already worried. Anything his friend wanted to talk about lately was always really serious.

Even now, the fairy looked uncomfortable and wouldn't look him in the eye. "Zero, I've been keeping some information from you…"

When she'd hesitated too long, Penn loudly said, "Uh, okay, what?"

The brunette took a long, deep sigh and finally stared her blue eyes into his cyan ones. "Did you know that there's a way for fairies to turn into humans?"

Instantly, Penn understood where this conversation was going but became cautious with his words and tone. "T-There is…?"

"Yes. I-I didn't want to tell you because…well, I didn't want you to get the wrong idea. But after that, the fairy loses all powers and never becomes a human ever again."

"O-Oh…h-how does this work?"

The fairy's wings would have to be cut off."

"Cut off?! That sounds intense!"

"It is…"

Penn finally took hold of Verge's hands, his thoughts wild and but his eyes didn't show the brunette what he was thinking. "Verge…why are you telling me this?"

Verge blinked once, twice, thrice, and it didn't seem to sink in for the redhead. So she laughed a broken laugh and hugged his skinny body. Penn hugged back, still clueless, but he didn't push it. Verge didn't look like she wanted to speak more. "Let's just get this mission over and done with. Let's save your parents."

* * *

The two made their way to the old, run-down theatre and as soon as they entered they saw lasers a-blazing and Sashi running after Derek. She was all decked up in cool new gear that Verge admired. When the girl saw the two enter, she moved closer to them.

"Penn, Verge, check out the new battle armour Phyllis designed for me. It's got a bunch of weapons and speed enhancers."

"That's so cool, Sash!" Verge exclaimed, turning smaller to admire the suit."

"Thanks. Now, I'm gonna kill a robot. _I'm coming for you!"_

"I fear death!" Derek cried.

"Looking good Sash!" Penn called out, as he and Verge approached the MUT.

"She looks good. _Boone_ looks great." The two looked to the left and saw their part-time Wiseman sitting in his own cool armor and eating popcorn, but his came with a weird-looking head gear.

"Uhh, what is that thing on your head?"

"It's clearly a brain-enhancing helmet. Pumping in the wisest minds from history into my skull sponge." He pressed a button on his helmet and little holographs popped out. "There's Emily Dickinson, Frederick Douglas, and Sun Tzu, master strategist. Killer dress bro."

The Sun Tzu looked confused before he disappeared.

"Wow!" Verge, always an enthusiast and confused newbie for new technology, gushed after Boone's demonstration. "Love the new little humans Boone!"

Penn only rolled his eyes playfully. "Okay, where's Phyllis?"

Boone yelped when a tube opened up from underneath his seat, and Phyllis walked out of it. "Putting finishing touches on these little bad boys."

She held out two, new unworn suits. Penn and Verge exchanged giddy, excited looks.

They began to suit up, and Verge was in awe of her own suit. Hers was a body suit that looked just like everyone else's, with all the buttons and gizmos, but this one was gold with black and white accents. As Verge examined it, she realized she could enhance her magic with this baby, and she laughed as shot water out of her hand, letting it rain indoors, before quickly blow-drying everyone off with wind.

"Awesome," Verge said, satisfied.

"Be careful, the helmet is delicate!" Boone scolded.

"Alright!" Penn exclaimed, flexing his arms. His armor also looked pretty cool, and even had his zero logo on his shoulder pads. "It's a little showy but I think I can pull it off."

"One last thing: triangulator." Phyllis pressed a button to open up the hatchet that was shaped like the MUT. "The shards from the Most Dangerous World Imaginable feed off evil energy." She placed the blue shards inside and when the hatch closed, Penn's chest glowed. Phyllis pressed a button on her pen to display a holograph, like with Sashi and her Specs. "I have selected three worlds with the most evil energy, one to charge each shard. Only when you charge all three shards can you triangulate exact location of Most Dangerous World Imaginable and find your parents."

"Okay. Looks easy enough."

Phyllis made a buzzer sound, like Penn was a representative in a game show that got the answer wrong. "It will take a lot of evil energy to charge each shard. But you will need to find most deadly spot in each of these most deadly worlds."

Now that he looked at the visuals in the holograph, the redhead's eyes were wide with terror. "Okay, that sounds terrible."

"Come on, Zero!" Verge, who had been riding on her little cloud of wind, now shrunk smaller and punched his armour. "We got this!" After a pause, she gripped her hand. "Ow—even with the armour that kind hurt—"

"Good news is you probably won't survive to see the worst of it," Phyllis tried to assure, walking over to put an arm over Penn's shoulders. "Don't worry, I have made upgrade to Sashi's Specs."

"Well, I don't know about you guys," Verge said, flying over to Boone and Sashi. "But I'm pumped!"

"Yes!" Sashi agreed, punching the air. "Whatever these new worlds we'll go to have for us…_bring it on."_

"Before anything," Phyllis announced, as the heroes were now on their respective positions on the zap platform (except for Verge, who was standing beside Penn). "I have chosen to make very important MUHU call before zap."

A MUHU holograph screen appeared before Penn, and the redhead gasped. "Mom, Dad!"

"Oh, honey," Vonnie was saying. She looked distressed and way too worried. "Please. I know you're trying to save us but…please, all four of you, please be careful."

"If things become too dangerous," Brock said. "you have to promise to retreat and go home."

"The only thing worse than not coming home would be knowing you're not safe. "

"Okay, I promise." Penn said. "But don't worry, it's not gonna come to that."

"We'll be fine, Mrs. Vonnie," Verge reassured.

Brock seemed to smile softly at the fairy. "Thank you so much for taking care of him, Verge."

The fairy wanted to cry.

"Brock and Vonnie," Phyllis called from her area. "go back to where you first got trapped. Penn, Verge, Sashi, and Boone will rescue you there. Everyone, today, more than ever…good luck."

With that, the four – anxious and determined as ever – looked back at Phyllis.

Then they got zapped.

* * *

The moment they arrived in the world, the strongest gust of wind ever began hitting all of them in the face; as in, literally hit their flesh. The wind coming from the large sand hole was so strong they could've gotten hurt. Verge was flapping her wings with all her might just to barely keep up with her friends walking towards it. Finally, Penn grabbed her hand, she turned smaller, and the fairy was wrapped tightly in his fist.

"Nothing like a cool breeze nearly ripping the flesh off your face!" the redhead shouted.

Sashi grunted and checked her Specs. "Okay, the most evil spot in this world is not far."

"I'll shield us from the wind!" Boone declared, and an umbrella popped up from his chest. The umbrella stuck to him, actually making him fly back farther, and he cried out as he was blown away.

"Yeahhhh that won't work." Verge tried to activate her protection magic, and it did manage to shield them. They walked closer to Boone, to bring him in the shield as well, and together the four casually walked through the wind to get to the spot.

"Well that wasn't as dangerous as Phyllis made it out to be," Sashi said confidently, after checking her Specs.

"Well I don't know. This Phyllis seems like a pretty smart lady."

Out from the ground, a windmill monster appeared and laughed evilly as its blades began to rotate quickly. "Care for a spin? Come to papa!"

The four may have seemed protected at first but the tornado that the windmill monster was making was strong enough to knock Verge off and break her force field. She nearly yelled as she was being sucked in, but Penn caught her and Sashi. The four were all cowering and gripping at the ground but the wind was far too strong. It sucked Boone up first.

"_Nooo!" _they all yelled.

Luckily, Boone hit a rock, and stayed safely behind it. But Penn and the girls were screaming as they too were sent flying. Penn also got to hold onto a rock, yelled "Gotcha!" as he grabbed onto Sashi, but began the two began to shout again when a fairy's wings were too weak to pull her away. _"Verge!"_

The brunette shrieked for her life, but just meters away from the blades, she felt her wings being covered and looked behind her. Her suit automatically activated another feature: metal blades unfolded, clung to her wings, and formed a kind of jetpack! The fuel was powerful enough to fly her away from the windmill monster and saved her in the nick of time.

"Oh my wings," Verge cursed while also thanking the gods. "Phyllis, I'm never misjudging you ever again—_Zero, Sashi hold on!" _

As the fairy flew to save her friends next, the windmill monster boomed, "Be careful. The wind is very _choppy_ today!" It strengthened its power, giving Verge a harder time to hold onto Penn and Sashi. Her friends gripped her for dear life, and Verge was able to keep them away from the monster, but couldn't go any further. They were pretty much stuck.

"This jetpack's gonna run out of fuel eventually!" she yelled. Sashi used the engines from her feet to help out, but it didn't do much either.

"Boone, we need _your_ wisdom!" Penn shouted.

The part-time Wiseman's rock broke off, sending Boone flying towards the monster. As the boy rode on the rock, the little holographs of Plato, Marie Curie, and Leonardo Da Vinci screaming, Boone only looked more determined than ever.

"Boone…wisdom…_coming…right…up!"_

He'd taken his helmet off and slammed it in between the windmill monster's blades, and it howled in pain as the rotating stopped and exploded. Boone fell to the ground with a groan, while Penn and the girls landed safely.

"Haha, yeah!" Penn exclaimed. "Boone you're a genius!"

Verge flew over, her wing jetpack still on. "Good job, Wiseman!"

"Thanks," Boone grinned. "But I never get tired of hearing it from Sashi Amanda Kobayashi."

Sashi rolled her eyes and checked her Specs. "Ugh, _fine. _Boone, you're a genius. Now, let's go idiot."

Verge high-fived Boone as they walked closer to the sand hole. "We made it to the most evil spot." Sashi announced, and they watched one part of Penn's hatch glow.

"Okay," the redhead said. "One charged. Two to go."

Together, he pressed it, and they zapped to the next world.

* * *

Once they were zapped they realized they were drenched and on top of clouds. "Oh no my wings are wet!" Verge cried.

"But, they're covered with metal," Boone pointed out.

"…Riiiight…"

"He-hey! Upside down rain!" Penn noted. "Cool—" But then he flinched. "Agh! I got some up my nose!"

Sashi ignored him and checked her Specs. "The most evil spot is on the other side of the waterfall."

The four walked towards it, thunder booming, and they saw the water formed evil-looking eyes and a mouth. A lady's voice spoke hoarsely.

"_You have a choice. Submit and live here forever in servitude or fight and perish slowly and painfully."_

Sashi only stepped forward bravely. "I'm giving _you_ a choice. Submit now and let us pass or prepare to be vaporized with extreme prejudice!" She held her arm weapon out.

Waterfall Lady only chuckled. _"Foolish girl."_

"Uh, Sash?" Verge said anxiously. "Might wanna…step back a bit…"

But Sashi's reflection on the waterfall laughed and kicked her, sending Sashi backwards. Her friends gasped, but the girl seemed unfazed as the reflected stepped out of the waterfall. "You're going down, Me," it said.

"That's what _I_ was gonna say."

Two more clones joined the first and they all smirked Sashi's wicked smirk. "Time to crush your skull!"

"Alright," Penn said, as he, Verge, and Boone rushed to Sashi's side. "Looks like it's 3 on 4."

But clones of the three also emerged and ran forward. "Sorry old bean! You guys are sitting this one out."

The clones attacked and all Boone said was, "I got a water clone too? Cool!"

Each of the heroes began to fight their own clones. Verge didn't know how the others were doing but fighting herself was tricky. With the suit on her reflection, it was already difficult and managed to enhance its powers too. Verge found herself facing her reflection's water power and it nearly drowned the fairy. Verge countered back and slipped away. She tried to use water right back but forgot her clone was made of it. It passed through and the clone then fought with light magic. Verge hissed as it blinded her, and the clone held her within another water fist.

The brunette struggled.

"Verge!" Penn choked out, as he was being held down by his own clone.

Sashi herself seemed to have trouble fighting three of her clones at once. One clone gazed down at her, looking triumphant. "Haha, you can't beat all three of yourself! You're not _strong enough."_

Sashi held her arm as she stood. "Maybe not, but being a good fighter isn't just about strength. It's also about knowing your _weaknesses!"_

The brunette girl jumped and attacked each clone, kicking them all in the shin. The Sashi clones cried out and broke into water again. Penn, Boone, and Verge's clones were all horrified in watching the fight. Verge, although still trapped, found this as her chance to press the button on her clone's suit that detaches the metal from her wings, and pinched the golden silk. The clone cried out as well, and disappeared, releasing the fairy.

"Haha…" Penn and Boone's clones didn't want to stick around so they ran off screaming.

The real boys ran to Verge as she gasped for air. "Are you okay?!" Penn exclaimed, fearfully.

"I'm fine, Zero!" the fairy laughed, standing, and the three went to Sashi. "Sashi—"

Waterfall Lady interrupted her as she howled in pain. "_You didn't have to hurt me so much. It really really hurts!"_

"Shut it," Sashi snapped. "We're walking through your face."

And so they did, while the waterfall sobbed. "So what just happened?" Penn asked the girl.

"I knew I might have to fight myself one day. So I intentionally made my left shin weak. Painful but worth it." She looked at Verge and smiled. "Glad you could manage out there."

"Haha…well, my wings really are a weakness in themselves. But I'm glad you managed as well."

The girls bumped fists as Penn pressed his hatch again after it glowed.

* * *

The third and final world was hot and the group zapped onto a floating rock that was too cramped. Verge grew smaller and flew above them so they could have space. They looked around and below them, they saw no floor but a wild, raging fire.

"Okay…" Penn muttered. "This is, uh, interesting—"

A column of fire shot up and knocked the four off the rock and into the fire. The three humans screamed but the fairy managed to dust them and help them regain their senses.

"Geez," she gasped.

They floated, but Sashi still shouted "Flight thrusters!" so they would at least be able to still guarantee they were safely flying.

Penn smiled weakly. "Still uhh… Still pretty interesting."

A monster appeared from within the flames and shot another fire column. Penn pushed them out of the way and lead them to a much safer land area. "I don't know about you guys but I could use a little less interesting right about now. It's kinda been my catchphrase since I got in here."

"Don't push it, Zero."

They landed safely and Sashi checked her Specs. "Penn, the most evil spot is on the summit of that mountain."

Penn used his own suit feature to check it out. "We're so close, I can taste it."

"I'm afraid that is the bitter taste of defeat."

Up ahead, Rippen and Larry zapped before them, with the part-time villain looking cockier than ever.

But Penn was also cocky. "I wouldn't know about that taste, would I Rippen?"

Larry held up a hand and whispered something that was clearly heard. "Uhh we're the ones who always lose so we know what defeat taste like, not him." He then spoke up louder. "Um, it's usually kinda salty but once in a while it's sour."

"Larry," Rippen cut in. "May I?" He faced Penn, eyes glaring daggers_. "Don't_ underestimate me Zero. Nothing has ever been more important in my life than stopping you today."

"Bite me, gremlin," Verge muttered under her breath.

"Four against two. I like those odds."

"How about _these_ odds?"

Rippen pressed a button on his suit and one by one, every villain, army, and criminal they've ever encountered began appearing behind Rippen, in flashes of red, as they were zapped from their worlds and looked angrier than ever. Phil had appeared at one point, looking all decked and suited up, and even the Hawk King and the hawks had arrived.

The Snowman from the Christmas world appeared and chucked. "He he he. Snowing somewhere?" He then yelped out as he began to melt. "Nobody could've told me this was a hot world!"

"Divergent!" the Hawk King screeched. "We're coming for you!"

The fairy only glared.

"These are the greatest villains in the multiverse!" Rippen announced proudly. "And the cutest."

He pointedly beamed at Lady Starblaster, but the woman rolled her eyes. "Quick villain tip: evil generals _don't_ use the word 'cutest'."

Rippen looked sheepish but still smiled. "Of course not, heh, sorry Lady Starblaster."

"And they _don't_ apologize. _Wow."_

He laughed stupidly and walked back to Larry's side. "Yes, right. Don't be a fool boy! Hand over the shards, return to Middleburg, and your lives will be spared."

"We can't open the portal here," Sashi pointed at Penn's chest. "The third shard's too dim."

"Zero, it's your call," Verge said.

He hesitated, but then Penn faced his old enemy, a hint of sadness in his voice. "You know Rippen, not rescuing my parents is literally my worst nightmare. But luckily, I've had that nightmare _so many times,_ it doesn't scare me anymore!" He brandished the sword Phyllis had given him as it whirred to life. "Your army is not so great. Heck, one of your soldiers is made outta butter!"

The Butterman, formerly the Milkman, frowned. "Hey, why are you picking on me friend?"

"So be it." Rippen climbed atop the shark monster from Oceanaquariapolis. "Evil army, prepare to destroy this foolish boy and his friends."

The monsters cried out, the unicorns neighed and whinnied, the giant monster cat raised its knife and meowed ferociously.

Penn held his sword and looked back at his friends. "You guys should go back to Middleburg."

Sashi stood her ground. "We're with you all the way."

"Thanks for understanding." Boone had said at the same time. But when the girls glared at him, he quickly said, "I mean we're in."

Verge walked to Penn's side and put a hand on his shoulder. "We'll always be here, Zero."

The redhead smiled widely, and together the four bumped their fists.

"_Quadruple fist bump."_

Rippen laughed at them. "Any last words?"

A flash of blue light appeared behind them. "Just seven! Did somebody call for _~Captain Super Captain~?"_

"You!" Verge cried out, happy to see the old superhero with them.

Rippen still looked at them mockingly. "Oh dear me. One superhero. However will—"

But just like the man's army, more heroes from every dimension in the multiverse began to be zapped in to help, arriving in a flash of blue light. The heroes grew in number until each sides of the fight finally seemed to be on equal ground. Phyllis was the last to arrive, and like Phil, she was suited up and ready to fight on Karen's back.

"Yes!" Penn cheered as he approached the roaring bear. "I always wanted a giant army!"

Phil spoke into a megaphone. "Phyllis, how did you know to come here?"

"I always wanted to know what you're up to. So long ago, I hid camera in beard of your best customer."

Old Man Middleburg pulled the strands of his beard aside and actually looked shocked. "I thought my beard felt hard the last couple of decades…"

"Hawk King!" Queen Lareon shouted from beside her husband, and before her fairy citizens. "A long time ago, we were afraid of you. But today is the day we settle this once and for all!"

"Thanks for coming, everyone!" Verge yelled. Her fairy kingdom cheered back in response.

Phyllis looked at Penn seriously. "This was also Verge's idea."

"Verge?" Penn looked at his fairy guide, shocked. "You knew about Rippen's plan?"

"Well, no," the brunette admitted. "But I had a feeling we could use a big army like this one day. So I asked Phyllis to send the word. And I made her show a holographic message of myself to those that probably wouldn't believe it. Who knew everyone would be so willing to help?"

"That's awesome, Verge," Sashi grinned, lightly punching the fairy's shoulder. "Good call."

"Really good call," Penn said, still shocked but smiling widely. "Thank you."

"Okay, Phyllis updates!" the good mechanic spoke into her own megaphone. "If Rippen accomplishes evil goal of stopping Penn from rescuing parents in this most evil world…"

"Scale of good and evil in multiverse will tip towards evil." Phill finished.

"And good will lose forever. So this battle is most important battle in the history of all time and space. Just saying."

"Sounds good to me!" Rippen shouted, his sharp orange weapon flaring in his left hand. "Evil army, don't let Penn Zero reach that mountain top."

"I call shotgun!" Larry exclaimed, flying in on his fox and seating himself beside Rippen.

"You heard this buffoon and his loyal man baby," Lady Starblaster told her army. "Let's get evil!"

Rippen laughed as the army began to charge.

The four exchanged looks. Sashi and Verge gave curt nods, giving Penn the motivation he needed as he raised his sword. "Come on good guys and girls and all you other things! _Yeahhhh!"_

"_Flip-flooops!"_

And so, good and evil clashed into war. Karen chomped on a dinosaur from ball world, the evil and good clowns fought each other dragons (tried to), the sports equipment chased the balls, the dragons spewed their fire, and Penn, Boone, and Sashi cut their way through trolls and skeletons. As the last mountain beast kicked Rippen away, Sheriff Scaly Briggs shot the super amazing bouncy ball at a gingerbread man, the Butterman attacked the Drabs and Hues, and Verge flew to her heavily armed fairies.

"My people! You know how I said only use the power of a weapon for offense as a last resort?!"

"_Yeah?!"_

"_This is definitely a last resort! Fight to the death, my kingdom! Protect what is right! Good never loses!"_

The fairies screamed their battle cries, grew to their bigger selves, and flew towards the hawks. When Verge last fought them, she was like a tiny tornado flailing her powers at everyone. Now, her Fast-flying fairies were making literal tornadoes and attacking their foes just like Verge had done. Some fairies shot arrows, some hit the hawks with sticks. The birds may have pecked and used their wings to create giant gusts of wind, but the fairies didn't relent.

No one retreated this time.

Verge was using her wings to hit some hawks and stopped herself when she saw a familiar fairy. It wasn't anyone from their side, and it wasn't someone she thought she'd ever see again. "Hello, Divergent."

"Lakely," Verge glared at the black-haired former dust keeper, who seemed to brandish a sharp sword made out of wood.

The black-haired fairy looked very happy that he was flying – as Rippen granted him dust – and he was grinning wickedly. "Thought you'd seen the last of me?"

"Lakely, don't do this—"

"I'll never forget what you did to me in that world." Lakely held up another wooden sword and tossed it towards Verge. She caught it in disdain. "Let's settle this properly, shall we?"

The fairy princess didn't disagree. Swords clashed in the air, and Penn looked up at Verge after he looked at the road to the mountain.

"Please win," he whispered under his breath.

Sashi cut through a robot, the good monsters accidentally fought each other, skeletons were actually hitting each other, Maria was fighting with her own sword, Lady Starblaster kept punching Mayor Pink Panda, the purple couple fought the evil trees, and Karen chomped on aliens to let Phyllis help Penn get to the summit.

Surprisingly, Lakely had gotten stronger since the last time Verge saw him. And it had been such a long time since she did. She wasn't prepared for his surprise, low-blow attacks. He'd aimed for her gut, her back, her wings, and it weakened her a lot. Verge found herself falling to the ground, and she saw the former dust keeper laughing evilly.

"Think you're so tough now, eh? Ready to face humiliating defeat? Do you feel the embarrassment I felt that day?!"

From the corner of her eye, Verge saw the winter fairies freezing robots. She saw the light fairies blinding monsters. Her parents were screaming attacks, and even tossing javelins at hawks. They'd grown so much since she first returned to Fairy World. Her memories had been returning as well. So much has happened.

Pride. Pride was all she felt.

So Verge forced herself up and yelled a battle cry as she continued to jab at Lakely.

Their duel continued for a while until Verge saw Rippen climbing up the summit. It seemed like he was about to attack Penn soon.

"Zero!" The fairy princess gathered the last of her strength and flew to Lakely, grabbing him in a chokehold.

"_What—"_

Verge body-slammed him to the ground, making him choke on his own blood and lay on the ground. The brunette backed away, panting. Clarence and Lumina approached, gasping when they saw Lakely.

"Lakely!" Lumina cried out. "Princess, when did he get to the evil side?"

"A long time ago," she croaked out. "Please, get him a healing fairy. I have other things to attend to."

While the fairies picked up the unconscious fairy, Verge flew to the mountain.

She flew closer to the ground and saw Sashi fighting and Boone talking to the other members of good. "Guys!" the fairy called out. "Zero needs our help!"

"Little busy here Verge!" Sashi grunted, attacking skeletons.

"But Sash—" Verge looked back at the mountain, shaking her head and flying towards it. "Just follow, okay?!"

"Verge—"

The fairy saw a figure falling and her wings flapped even faster. "I'm coming Penn! _Penn!"_

* * *

**I wanna say my acknowledgements as early as now!**

**Thank you to Crazycartoons5488 for staying loyal to this story!**

**Thank you to Kinghammer Publishing, emyy250 for submitting your OCs, and to Lilla for letting me use yours!**

**Thank you so so much to Charr777 for being my most loyal and supportive reader! I love you so so much!**

**Thank you to my love, ricothesilver (Instagram) for transcribing the finale, even though he hasn't watched any PZ episode HAHAHA  
**

**And finally, thank you to all you readers that have stuck by this story until now, and to those readers that end up reading this after this story finishes!**

**I hope I can post the 2****nd**** half and final chapter soon! Sorry not sorry for the cliffhanger. Remember to leave a favourite and a review!**


	27. At the End of the Worlds (Part 2)

**Episode 23 (Part 2): At the End of the Worlds**

* * *

**Wow**

**Okay**

**This is it**

**Hold on to your seats, ladies and gentlemen**

* * *

Rippen used his weapon to stab Penn's chest.

But a huge wave of energy burst out, sending him flying backwards. The boy gasped down at the Triangulator. "You charged it! The evil energy charged it!"

A portal opened up before him.

"_My boy!"_

"_Penn!"_

"Mom! Dad!"

Penn ran to his parents, overjoyed. Thoughts ran through his mind and he may have just cried right then and there. Finally, they could be a family, once again—

"Help! Help! Somebody help!"

Rippen was dangling by the edge of the cliff. He looked very much in danger. He was ready to fall into the flaming jaws of the monster below the mountain.

The redhead was shocked, clearly at a crossroads. His parents were _right there._ But when he looked at his mom and dad, he knew what he needed to do.

"_Penn?"_

"I can't hold on! _Noooo!"_

As soon as Rippen's hand slipped, Penn reached for him, struggling to keep him up. "Dude! You are _not _light."

The villain actually looked horrified. "W-Why are you doing this?"

"Listening…to my inner…hero!" With a final pull, he brought Rippen back to safety, and the man just stared in disbelief. Penn only smiled back. "Time to get back to saving my—"

He was cut off by a fin-slap to the face. "Nobody but Rippen!" the shark monster declared.

"_No!"_

"_NO!"_

Penn fell, and he was panicking. He pressed for his flight thrusters, but they weren't working! Rippen's weapon must have penetrated them as well!

The only thing Penn could do now was accept his fate.

As he fell, the monster roared. As the boy got closer and closer to the fire in its jaws, he closed his eyes.

Penn's life began to flash through his head.

He remembered when he did his first dance move.

He remembered when his mom took him out to bike, and she did that cool flip over the car.

He remembered…the day he found Verge…passed out cold from the rain.

He remembered cheering her up.

He remembered celebrating his 14th birthday.

His best friends and Phyllis were there to surprise him with a cake.

His parents were smiling from their MUHU screen.

Penn remembered that when Verge poked her head out of his hair to rub his forehead…

…he knew he was going to get them back soon.

And he did.

Penn thought now lived a good life.

So he fell with a smile on his face.

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Just before the monster's jaws closed up, Penn felt himself being lifted up. He found three hands holding onto him, and saw his best friends.

"Did somebody order a heroic moment from charming underdog, Boone Wiseman?!"

Sashi smirked. "Boone's been practicing that line the whole battle."

"Zero, you dumb idiot," Verge's voice was faltering and she was laughing. But there were honest tears peeking out the side of her eyes. Penn had to smile at that.

Sashi shot an ice blast at the monster's nose below them. For some reason, it could talk._ "Ow, my nose. Why would you do that?"_ It retreated back into the flames.

Penn looked back up at his friends. "You guys cut it a little close but, thanks."

"Pennnnnn!"

The four looked up to see two figures falling down. "Mom? Dad?"

"Rippen pulled us out of the portal, which was a real surprise!" Brock called out.

"So we dove off the cliff after you!" Vonnie added.

"Why would you do that?!" Verge exclaimed angrily. She released her grip from Penn, conjured up a large ball of fairy dust, and threw it at the parents. They floated in the air as soon as the dust hit, and they let out sighs of relief.

"Whew!" Brock flew to Verge and put her in a headlock. "C'mere you! Always ready with your dust."

Verge laughed as the man rubbed her head. "It's good to have you back…Brock."

"Oh, Vergie!" It was Vonnie's turn to hug the fairy, with both girls savouring the moment.

As soon as Verge was out of his arms, Brock flew to Penn and enveloped his son in a bone-crushing hug. "Oh, Penn! It's so good to see you, buddy!"

"Dad…" The redhead couldn't stop smiling.

"Penn!" Vonnie joined the hug and squeezed her son tight. "We missed you so much…"

When Verge, Boone, and Sashi came up to hug them as well, Penn felt like he might cry. This was perfect. Everything was perfect.

"Yeeeehaw!" Tomkat Badawy's voice rang out. "I feel as keen as a boll weevil on Flapjack Tuesday!"

Karen roared as Phyllis was making her fly up until the six were placed safely on her back. "Enough falling! Enough rescue! Enough roaring!"

Everyone was giving smiles around, but the moment was ruined when they saw Rippen's face.

"…My not evil smile is creeping you out."

Everyone began speaking over one another. Verge had muttered, "That was a smile?"

"Totally understandable."

"Enough creepy smile! Enough hugging! We have big problem!"

Phyllis pointed at the portal, which looked coated with dark energy. Everyone in the war stopped fighting and just gathered around the heroes. "Brock and Vonnie have been rescued. Which means good has won the battle for multiverse.

The good mechanic shot fireworks that spelled out "Good wins" from her arm weapon, and everyone on Good's side began to cheer. Blaze even spewed flames that encircled the words. Verge was hooting the loudest and brought her best friends in for a big hug. When Phyllis shot fireworks that spelled "Nice try Evil", everyone on Evil's side booed and jeered.

Phil still tried to be a good sport and held his fist up. "Big ups Phyllis!"

The woman only ignored him. "Unfortunately as I suspected, evil energy is pushing into this world and will destroy every world and everyone that ever was."

Maria the dolphin boat raised an eyebrow. "Dramatic much?"

"You in the back, pay attention. Okay," Phyllis pressed a button on her head gear and a holograph appeared. "we will go into Most Dangerous World Imaginable then we will set off many implosion bombs. We will return to theatre where I will detonate bombs with remote, closing portal."

Penn understood. "Okay, but where are we gonna get the bombs?

"Thank you for stupid question. Phyllis brought bombs with her." Phyllis pressed a button on Derek's chest and a hatch opened up to reveal several glowing green objects.

Derek looked aghast. _"What? How long have you been storing bombs in my torso. I went skiing last week!"_

"Tell me where you skied!" Professor Evil Professor demanded. "Was there good powder or there moggles?"

"People, this is no time for skii talk!" Dr. Hissy cried. "It's golf season."

"We don't have time for classic ski vs golf debate," Phil put in. _"And_ we don't need everyone so goodbye dead weight."

"No need to be rude to everyone," Verge scolded.

Phyllis ignored her. "Okay it's been real B-team, also C-team, D-team less so but good."

Phil and Phyllis simultaneously pressed a button on their arm weapons and one by one, the heroes and villains began to zap back to their homes. Some, however, still remained. This included Lady Starblaster, Sheriff, Amber, and their dinos, and some fairies.

"Alright!" Brock exclaimed. "Some of us are heroes, some of us are villains!" At that, Professor Evil Professor smacked his twin brother away. "But today, we're all just people or…creatures or…whatever. The point being we all want to continue to exist."

"The Most Dangerous World Imaginable is full of things," Vonnie continued. "that will make your nightmares look like a children's bedtime story."

The President of the monster world chuckled. "All my dreams are black and white still photos of bowl of fruit. It was about my mother. I know it was."

"Let's…not dwell on that," Verge raised an eyebrow.

"The point is!" Penn put in. "We're gonna have to do this together."

Verge flapped her wings proudly. "I do believe if we all cooperate, we'll be able to save the multi-verse!"

Surprisingly, Rippen placed a hand on Penn's shoulder. "The Zeros – and the little fairy - are right."

"Mind you, she's my daughter!" King Lauqui shouted.

"Just follow their lead and don't get caught up in trying to live up to your evil family's unreasonable expectations for several decades."

The tone in his voice was apparent, and the golden-winged fairy approached the former foe and nudged his arm. "Touchy subject, huh Rip?"

The villain just scoffed.

Everyone then began cheering. Lakely, who was now feeling better, scoffed. "This is stupid…"

Arianna laughed and slapped the former dust keeper's back, to which he flinched at, "If you wanna die, go ahead and stay in the sidelines waiting for this to all go to Hades!"

Lakely was silent after that.

Sashi pounded her fist against her palm. "Let's go blow stuff up."

"For multiverse!" Phyllis cried. At Karen's roar, the bear leapt into the portal.

Everyone followed suit.

Verge and her kind were the last to enter. It seemed as if the fairies were still reluctant. After all, they were only about a dozen of them left. "Everyone, remember! This is not just for us, but for the good of all dimensions! It's what we were born to do, right? We bring nature and hope and light…this is pretty much the same!"

The fairies slowly began to beam at that. She was right, after all. The fairy princess smirked and pumped her fist. "Let's go, hawkheads!"

As the fairies cheered and flew into the portal, King Lauqui and Queen Lareon looked ready to tear up.

* * *

"Okay!" Phyllis announced once everyone was through. "Evil creatures are drawn to evil energy. Fight them off and place bombs around portal—"

"—Bombs around portal everyone!" Phil interrupted. Phyllis glared.

Boone was flying around on his flight thrusters and looked surprised at this creature. "Vampire Pencils? If they bite me, will I turn into a vampire or a pencil?"

"Just kill it and it won't matter." Sashi blowtorched a vampire pencil with ease.

The part-time wiseman kicked the creature and lowered himself to the ground. The bomb he placed by his feet turned from green to red. "Implosion bomb one: activated!"

"Got it, Boone!" Verge was about to place a bomb on the floor, giant robot bugs began to approach her and the Zeros. Vonnie instantly used her sword weapon to stab one. Brock punched another.

"And_ that_ is how you punch a robot bug, son."

Penn smiled. "Thanks dad. Kinda have my own style but I can take notes." He sliced another robot bug with his own weapon easily.

"Same here!" Verge began to summon her fast-flying magic and spun in circles around the Zero family. Every bug that tried to get close to them squealed as they got swatted away by the mini tornado.

When Verge came to a halt, weird wolf creatures with human heads for faces tried to attack from behind. _"Not so fast!"_

When the princess turned, she saw her mother conjure her ice magic and freeze the creature. Her dad then shot a blast of fairy dust at it, and made a powerful kick that sent it flying backwards. "Nice one Mom and Dad!" the brunette fairy cheered.

The other fairies were also hard at work. Frostbite was freezing some monsters left and right while Arianna's Animal fairy instinct got her to care for them and let them grow onto her. Clarence sent floods that carried the television skeletons away. Lumina and Ivan blinded some trolls. Lakely was trying to do the thing King Lauqui was doing after Frostbite froze the monsters. It seemed as if the fairies were the ones mostly attacking the monsters and creatures while everyone else planted the bombs.

"I feel so proud," Verge sniffed. It was true. It seemed their combat training with their fairy powers was finally paying off.

"I'm very impressed at what you've been teaching them, Vergie!" Vonnie chirped." And hey! If the King and Queen are your parents and we count you in this little club, this is the first time we're destroying things as a family. Feels natural."

"It does, doesn't it?" Penn glanced up at Verge, who was flying beside him. He held up his finger with a smile.

The fairy happily shrunk, tiny fist-bumped it, and went back to her larger size.

From afar, Phyllis had activated a giant, egg-shaped bomb at the center of all the small bombs. However, as soon as it was placed, the giant chicken that terrorized Brock and Vonnie before picked it up with its beak and began pecking at it, lifting it up as well. "No! We must stop giant chicken from pecking bomb. Or everything will end for stupid reason."

"Oh wings—Look!" Verge was about to curse but then Rippen was running up to a troll and found a way inside its head. Suddenly, the troll seemed to be under control as it punched the chicken away.

"Wow," the fairies simultaneously.

When Rippen made the troll punch itself until it passed out, he then got out of it. The monster slooked frightened. When he shouted "Boo!", they all ran away.

Verge seemed to be the only one that laughed out loud at all this, flew to Rippen and slapped him on the back. "Not bad!"

"Ow. " The villain, who was just leaning on the troll and trying to look cool, wheezed at the impact.

"Main implosion bomb activated!" Phyllis declared. "Everybody ready?"

"Everybody ready! I said it." Phil cried.

Everyone stood by their implosion bombs – the fairies hovered over everyone else – and the little gadgets began to shiver and shake.

"All implosion bomb linked. Time to zap." Phyllis pressed a button on her arm and everyone got zapped back to the Odyssey.

* * *

The heroes and villains all watched as the evil energy zapped through the MUT, anticipating the bombs' implosion.

Phyllis stepped onto the zap platform with the main heroes, ready to press the button to end it all. "So long, Most Dangerous World Imaginable! Yooooo coconut!"

She pressed the bomb button…but the bombs did not activate.

Phyllis pressed again. "Yo coconut."

Again, nothing happened.

"Uh-oh," Verge and her parents said together.

Phyllis angrily continued to press it "Yo co-co-nut! Yo co-co—"

"Oooh," Rippen looked like he'd come to a realization. "That's what that's for. You know, funny story, um, earlier today, I actually snuck in here and sabotaged a bunch of stuff. You know, back when I was still…you know, really, really evil. My bad."

Everyone started glaring at Rippen. The man suddenly brought his tail out. "Has everyone had a look at my gorgeous tail? It's always been there. Everyone have a look at it, before I put it away."

No one was amused. Phyllis looked so done. _"Anyway,_ without remote detonator, we are doomed."

"We are doomed!" Phil repeated.

Everyone stared at the MUT now, as the evil energy continued to spread. They could practically feel the Most Dangerous World Imaginable's darkness and evilness taking over everything…

"No…" Verge was the first to fly up and tremble in fear. "It can't be like that. This…can't be how it all ends…there has to be another way to save the worlds!"

At her words, the ground shook. Phyllis pressed the side of her head gear. "Phyllis has run calculations and only way to save multiverse is for someone to go in and close portal from other side."

"Okay…maybe another way?"

Vonnie suddenly took her husband's arm. They looked at each other once before saying, "We'll go."

Penn looked horrified and ran up to them "What?! No! You just came back!"

Brock placed a hand on the boy's shoulder. "Son, we're the only ones who have done it before."

"Being away from you breaks our hearts but knowing you'll be okay is all we need to be happy."

Verge stared, as horrified as Penn was. She looked at her parents, her subjects, who were stunned as well. The fairy wanted to say something…but couldn't.

Penn looked ready to cry and hugged his parents. "It's not fair."

"_He's right!" _

The Zeros were shocked as they turned and everyone looked as well. Verge was the most surprised to find that it was her dad. He flew forward as tears spilled from his eyes. "As a parent, I know what it is like to not be with your child for a very, very long time. And I also know what it's like to believe that, even if we are apart, their safety is supposed to be what keeps you going! …But I also know that despite all this, if I were given the chance to keep my daughter close to me forever, I would. If there were any other way, I would!"

King Lauqui's wife also burst into tears. The fairies behind them nodded in agreement, broken smiles on their faces. The heroes and villains in the room just looked solemn, including Boone and Sashi. Verge could also feel herself tearing up, as she took both her parents' hands.

At the old king's speech, Penn smiled softly. He did appreciate the sentiment and support…but he also couldn't help but feel like there was a deeper meaning to it…

His own parents just sniffed and smiled. Brock spoke up first. "Your Highness…I thank you for your words, I do… But it is the only way."

"No it is not." Everyone was even more shocked at the next person who spoke. They all turned to find it was Rippen, and he looked determined as he stood on the zap platform. "You two aren't going anywhere." Everybody in the room gasped, including Scaly Briggs' dinosaur. "My whole life, I've been jealous, petty and greedy. But Penn and his annoying friends have proved that loyalty, integrity and honesty are better ways to reach your goals." The man then gagged a bit. "Sorry, saying that made me throw up in my mouth a little… Heirloom tomato. You probably didn't need to know that."

The ground began to shake even more vigorously and Phyllis ran up to her area. Penn still seemed in shock from all this. "You'll really go?"

"After all the horrible things I've done to you, you saved my life. No one besides Larry would've done that. Not even my own family or Phil."

"Is true!" Phil agreed.

"Besides! I kicked some serious butt in the Most Dangerous World Imaginable." Maria and Amber seemed to exchange fed-up glances. "I plan on taking it over. Living there will be like finally becoming the full time villain!"

He laughed evilly, but when Verge and Penn exchanged smiles, they knew they were saved. So Penn approached his former enemy and shook his hand. "Thank you. You know, I always thought there was something decent inside of you. Underneath your gross face, dumb hair, bad breath, terrible jokes, complete lack of coordination or rhythm, weird fashion sense—"

"That's okay okay, we all get it. Goodbye everyone! It's going to be a fresh start for Rippen!"

"With Lady Starblaster by his side!" The said woman of Rippen's dreams stepped on the zap platform with him and gazed into his eyes. "I've been looking for a mate evil enough to survive my attempts on his love."

Everyone "awww"ed and Rippen looked overjoyed as he took her hands. "This is a dream come true Lady Starblaster!"

"You can call me Ami with an I."

As the two were about to meet in a loving kiss, they were interrupted. "And you can call me Larry with a Y. Yup, I'm coming too!"

"Oh boy," Verge chuckled, leaning on Penn's shoulder and placing a hand on her hip. "This should be good." The redhead smirked in response.

Rippen bent to meet his minion's height. "Oh Larry. I could not be more serious when I say that I will consider it the greatest gift one person could give to one another if you stayed here and I never saw you again."

Larry somehow teared up at that. "It's beautiful the lies you'll tell to try to keep me safe! Give me a kiss." He made the man bend down further and pecked his cheek. Boone and Sashi smiled at each other when Larry hugged his villain. "I'm going to be your minion forever. I'm gonna be your forever Larry."

The man didn't seem like he could do anything about it. "Fine alright."

Larry brought something out of his suit and waved it. "Hey, old man Middleburg, here's the deed to your old ancestral mansion back. Catch!"

Sonny tried to catch it himself. "Hey—!" Then he remembered he was a ghost and the deed phased through. "Aww"

"Huzzah!" the old man cried.

Larry then suddenly had a horn and blew into it. His little teacup elephant came bouncing through the theatre doors and into Larry's arms. "Tony! Come on. Come on. There we go."

Rippen grunted. "Finally. Farewell Middleburg—!"

"Room for one more?" The President of the monster world ran up to the platform and stood before Larry.

"What. No."

"It was explained to me recently by a stuffed talking snake that you're the real Ensign I fell in love with and married. My term as president is up! Living in a terrifying deathscape seems like a really good retirement plan to me. Give me Larry."

She pulled him into her arms and kissed the man. Everyone "awww"ed again and Penn smiled. "I didn't know that was a uh, a thing."

"No, that's too many people!" Rippen complained. "There aren't even enough spots on this zap platform!"

"Excuse me, I fly over that thing everyday!" Verge countered.

"Plus, always room for more!" Phyllis said, pressing buttons. Sure enough, more platforms began to appear.

"_~Professor Evil Professor~_ is looking for a new start too!"

The dinosaurs roared and the ground shook even more. "Can we just go already?!"

"Anyone else who wants to go, now is time!" Phyllis declared.

More people from different dimensions suddenly get on the platform to join Rippen. Even the old music teacher that liked him joined in, and Verge wondered aloud "Where did she come from?!"

"No!" the old villain cried. "You're all ruining this for me."

But they all get zapped anyway.

Once those people were on the other side, they scattered. But Rippen's first order of business was to activate the implosion bomb. Once he did, green smoke overcame the orange smoke that had been arising, and everything was sucked back into the portal. Once the dark energy returned to the Most Dangerous World Imaginable, Phyllis flipped a switch, causing the MUT to close. When she looked back at her screen, it seemed as if every dimension was now back to normal. And so, she had one thing to declare.

"Multiverse is saved."

"Classic Rippen." Phil was the first to applaud.

Everyone cheered after. Finally, everyone can safely say that everything is back to normal. Now, it was Penn's turn to bring Verge and his parents into one big hug.

"When do we get paid?" Scaly Briggs demanded.

"Oh shush you're ruining this moment!" Verge scolded. "Your payment is yoru safe return home."

"What?! I darn feel played!"

"It's true!" Phyllis snapped. "Now is the time for everyone to return to proper dimension."

Maria was the first to step on the platform and when she did, she smiled at Penn. "Well, it's been real. I gotta say, I like the ponytail better."

Zap.

"_~Captain Super Captain_~ is late for super taco night!"

Zap.

Scaly Briggs beamed as he stepped on the platform with Amber. "I'll never forget you Ben, Spoon, Detergent, and most of all, the girl one."

Sashi just crossed her arms and groaned. Verge retorted, "I'm also a girl!"

Amber turned to her father. "I wish I saw a car"

Zap.

"Wheeew," Adam suddenly stepped up on the platform. "Listening to your inner hero paid off isn't it?" Then his eyes widened. "Wait, no, _I live on Earth!"_

Zap.

"Poor old man," King Lauqui "tsk"ed and shook his head. When he looked around the room, he perked up. "Oh, it's our turn!"

"We're the last ones, Sir!" Frostbite mentioned.

The fairies then started to take their steps on zap platforms. Lakely seemed to be the only one that was uncomfortable as he stood by the side. King Lauqui noticed this and started walking towards this. When the former dust keeper lifted his head, the king placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Come home with us, Lakely. It was wrong to banish you. I believe there's hope for you yet."

The black-haired fairy's one visible eye twinkled as tears threatened to escape. "Y-You're joking…y-you think I'll just come h-home after all this…"

He cut himself off when he looked to the other fairies at the side platforms. Lumina and Clarence were gesturing him to come to them. Frostbite just scoffed and smirked. Arianna waved him over, shouting "Come on, Lakely, come on!"

Eventually, he gave in. The fairy released himself from the King's grip and jumped into his old friends' arms. That's when the tears began to come down.

Deep inside, Verge felt relief for him.

The King and Queen now stood at the center platform. The Zeros stepped forward, along with Verge."I think this is the right time to formally thank you for taking care of our daughter," Queen Lareon said.

"Don't mention it!" Brock waved a hand. "In truth, Verge always seemed like a daughter to us as well." The blonde man reached out to cup the fairy's cheek, and she couldn't wipe the grin off her face. "I think she always will be."

Vonnie smiled sweetly at the royal fairy family. "We're thankful that fate caused us to meet."

Penn nodded in agreement, and Verge laughed lightly. Then her father leaned forward, took his child's hands in his, and gazed into her eyes. "My Divergent…you have grown so much…your mother and I are very, very proud."

"…Dad—"

Queen Lareon placed a hand on her shoulder. "We said that there would be_ that time_, yes? Well, let us remind you that, we'll support whatever you choose. Always."

Verge's blue eyes watered. "Mom…Dad…"

She couldn't help herself. She threw herself into their arms and wept quietly. The King and Queen hugged her tight, refusing to let her go.

Brock and Vonnie watched, their mouths turned up in smiles. Penn smiled as well, but it wasn't as forlorn as his parents'.

When the fairy princess finally pulled away, the redhead put a hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry, Verge. You'll see them again whenever you want, right?"

Phyllis began to start the MUT up again, but Verge felt time stop.

Her heart beat fast and she knew that, _this _was the right time to choose. It was her last chance. She found herself saying, "Phyllis, wait." When the mechanic stopped what she was doing, silence fell through the theatre. "Not yet."

Penn was just as confused as everyone else. "Uh, Verge…?"

The brunette had kept her head down for quite a while. But when she finally raised it, the saddest expression was painted across her face. "Zero…Phyllis said it was time for us to return to our _proper_ dimensions."

The boy's heart stopped for a moment. "…What…?"

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you…but my parents warned me that, there would be a day when I'd have to choose whether to give up my wings and live here with you…or give up my part-time job and focus on my true responsibility: being Fairy World's next leader." She rubbed her arm and looked down. "I think…you and I both know what my obvious choice would be."

The pieces were fitting perfectly in Penn's head but he still didn't want to form the picture. "Verge, no…no…w-why didn't you—" He bit his lip, fighting back tears. "Why didn't you tell me?!"

The fairy just shrugged and laughed. "I don't tell you everything."

Sashi choked on a broken laugh. Boone just stared in disbelief. Penn was laughing but the situation wasn't at all funny. "No…you're…just going to leave? W-We haven't prepared a party or anything, can't you go back on another day—"

"After this," Phyllis interrupted. "There is no possible way for Verge to return through MUT."

"You hear Phyllis," Verge sighed. "I have to go back with them." She stretched her arms out to the other fairies. "They are my people. I can't focus on them half the time. They need my full attention."

The fairies her age began to smile at the loyalty of their future queen. Even Lakely looked a bit shocked.

But Penn wasn't having any of it. The words barely escaped his trembling lips as he said "Or…you can stay here."

Verge stared. "What?"

"I-It's an option, right? I know it's bad but, look! You'll go to school, live a normal life…we'll get you a new bed! We'll treat you like a human." Tears were coming down his cheeks now. "Just…don't leave…I lost my family once, I can't lose it again."

The sight made Verge start to cry as well. The King and Queen stared at the boy, smiling genuinely at his bravery to speak up. He really loved her, and they could see she loved him too.

But then Verge flew up to Penn and pressed her forehead against his. "Oh, Zero…you'll never lose me. I'll always be here, remember?"

That's when everyone in the room knew. She loved him…so much that she had to let him go. Penn only bit his lip harder.

Brock and Vonnie started crying softly when Verge flew over to hug them. "We'll miss seeing you fly around the house," Vonnie whispered.

"Remember every survival skill I ever taught you," Brock reminded. "And you'll be an excellent leader…ah, who am I kidding, you already are."

Verge laughed and hugged them tighter. "Thank you….Vonnie and Brock. Mom and Dad."

The fairy then walked towards Boone, who didn't mind the flowing tears from his eyes. The brunette boy instantly reached for her tiny head and hugged it. "I'm gonna miss ya, you little insect. And doing missions with you. And our Flight Fridays. And the takeout you would bring us when we didn't like the food—"

"I get it Boone," Verge interrupted. But she hugged him back still. "Gonna miss you too." Boone choked on a sob.

Then she came to Sashi, and the girl's arms were just crossed and her eyes were squinted.

"Never forget. You're a fearsome warrior and no one tells you what to do."

The golden-winged fairy smiled softly. "Of course I'll remember. I had the best part-time sidekick as a best friend reminding me of that."

And so, Sashi teared up as well and hugged the fairy tightly. Verge hugged back, now realizing she really didn't want to let go.

But she had to. She whispered in the girl's ear, "If you can, do it. I wouldn't mind." Sashi was surprised and simply nodded.

Verge then flew up to Phyllis and just tackled the mechanic in a hug next. The old woman was shocked but still smiled and wrapped her arms around the fairy with such warmth.

"Alright, alright, hurry up with goodbyes." But even Phyllis didn't let go until Verge did.

The fairy finally descended back to her spot before her parents, before Penn, who was really trying his best not to cry.

But then, Verge pecked his lips and pulled him in for a hug.

The redhead couldn't contain his cries anymore and just held her.

Divergent.

His oldest friend, his roommate, his first love.

"I love you," she whispered.

"I love you too," he choked. "You're…going to make a great queen…"

This was the final goodbye.

Finally, he let her go and watched her grin and step back onto the platform. Her parents hugged her once more before pulling away and letting the fairy princess wave to everyone else.

"See you, everyone!"

For the last time, the fairies got zapped.

Verge.

Her parents.

Her citizens.

Gone.

Penn, his parents, Boone, Sashi, and Phyllis all stood in silence. "Wait, she didn't say goodbye to me," Phil suddenly said.

"She did not know you well," Phyllis snapped back. "But anyway…That is it. Everybody out."

Everyone filed out of the theatre. Penn and his friends were still pretty quiet, but Brock tried to break the ice. "Well Phillip. You're gonna have to find us some new part time villains to beat and embarrass daily."

Phil only smiled. "There is no need for part time heroes or villains anymore."

The five exchanged confused looks. "Good job everyone!" Phyllis announced, now holding some papers. "Could have been better but still pretty good. Not terrible. Here is reference for next job. Here you go." She began handing out the papers to each of the part-time heroes. "Not Boone, sorry."

The boy looked offended.

"Wait so, so that's it?" Penn asked. "What do we do now?"

"What you have been doing: be a hero. You don't need me anymore. Phyllis has to be going now."

She stood beside Phil and the two began to walk sideways towards each other. "Just remember: the most important…"

"…thing"

"…is…"

"…_balance."_

The two mechanics merged and became one, glowing human. They lifted into the air, causing thw wind to swirl around them and grow into a giant, omnipotent blue creature with a red face. It landed before the gawking heroes. _"Thank you for maintaining that balance. I will be watching over you, probably, especially if the heroes need it again. Good luck."_

The blue creature rose, turning into a wave of blue light, and shot into the sky like a shooting star. Not too long after, the Odyssey and Fish Stick on A Stick ascended into the air and folded up, until it exploded into nothingness, and the areas whence they came now were empty.

The five were frozen and speechless, until Sashi spoke up.

"Sooo they were the same person?"

"Uhhn _no,"_ Boone retorted. "Clearly they were the same space gorilla."

"Or they just became the same space gorilla," Penn added.

Vonnie approached her son. "I guess the balance of good and evil means both needed a fair shake. Does that make sense?"

"Not at all honey," Brock chuckled.

His wife then turned and looked surprised. "Is that our car? I thought it would've been towed by now."

Penn moved towards his parents and smiled. "The important thing is we get to be a family again." When they hugged, it seemed to last a lifetime. "…you know…mostly…"

* * *

**YES I LOVE THIS SONG BUT I DON'T HAVE THE LYRICS SO LET'S JUST PRETEND THEY'RE PLAYING LALALALALLALALALALALALALALA-**

* * *

Much time has passed since then.

In Sashi's house, her parents happily placed a trophy labelled "Sashi Kobayashi: Part-time Sidekick" with her Specs on it. Her parents proudly hugged her, and she hugged back with a big smile.

It almost faltered when she could've sworn she saw her friends' smiling faces through the lens. She almost saw Verge.

* * *

At Boone's house, Wisemans had meat loaf. Boone cut himself one slice before feeding the rest to Karen the Bear. She chomped the whole thing up, including the chair.

Boone thought about how Verge could've easily tamed her, and frowned.

* * *

At Penn's house, he was happy to put a blanket over his Dad, who had fallen asleep on the couch. He ate from a plate of fries his mom had prepared and then turned to the mantel. His MUHU was lifeless now, but when he looked at his parents, he remembered he probably didn't need it anymore.

But, he still did, just in case.

* * *

In Fairy World, the citizens were cheering as they stood before the castle. King Lauqui never looked prouder as he placed a flower crown on Verge's head. When the fairy princess walked closer to the balcony, her people cheered even louder. The ones that had joined her in the Most Dangerous World Imaginable cheered the loudest. Even Lakely clapped a bit.

Yes, Verge was happy to lead them. But she still felt empty.

* * *

At school, everything seemed to return to normal. Boone would tell his ridiculous stories. Sashi got a haircut.

Whenever Penn saw her from across the halls, he always waved.

She waved back.

And the three would always find time to visit the classroom down the hall.

One day, Brook was teasing Lance about something, Lena and Gloria were talking about fairies, and Cit brought video games for them to play. Penn, Boone, and Sashi would join sometimes.

But at the end of the day, the art club would occasionally make art that would remind them of Verge. Penn felt touched by that.

* * *

Now, the trio were walking the streets near the Odyssey and reminiscing just how much time they've spent.

"It's weird, not going to the theatre…and seeing Verge poke her head out of Penn's hair or something."

"Yeah…" Boone agreed.

Penn sighed a bit. "Yeah…I miss it too…I miss _her."_

"We all do. We just need to move on! I think I'm gonna grow a beard. You know, eventually when I can."

Penn raised his hands. "You know, Phyllis said that we should keep being heroes. So, why don't we just come up with our own missions."

Sashi then noticed something stuck to a post and held up a flyer. "It's not destroying an alien space tank but maybe finding this puppy can be our mission."

"Ooh ooh ooh ooh ooh!" Boone gushed. "If i find it first, I'm naming it 'Boone Jr.' or or or or or or Michelle."

"Boone!" Penn cried as the brunette walked away. "It already has a name! Patrick! What—"

The redhead was about to walk forward until Sashi grabbed his wrist. There was a mysterious smile on her face and the boy smiled back. But he did get curious when she got more silent…

Then Sashi pressed her lips against his. It must have been natural instinct because he ultimately kissed back. When she let go and looked away bashfully, Penn almost found himself wanting more.

He blushed and asked stupidly, "Uhh…is this like a thing now?"

"Mmmmm…maybe. And, I probably know what you're thinking."

Penn then snapped back to reality. "Wait…what about—"

"Verge is the one who told me to go for it."

At that moment, the boy wanted to cry all over again. Even when she wasn't around…she was still thinking of them.

Sashi suddenly punched Penn in the arm when Boone walked back to them. "Boone Jr. or Michelle was just sitting over there by that tree."

"Nice work Boone."

"Look at this little guy! Or girl, I don't know, I'm scared to look."

Penn put his hands on his hips and smiled. "I think we're going to need to find some tougher missions."

"With your fairy guide, I hope?"

At that, the boy instantly whirled around, recognizing that voice anywhere. He looked around frantically, and Boone and Sashi wondered what was holding him up.

Finally, a bright light zoomed past them, encircled the three about three times before finally stopping before Penn's face. It was wearing a long golden gown and the flower crown that had been recently bestowed on her.

"_Verge?!" _

The fairy princess grew bigger and smirked as she tucked her wings. "You forgot I have my own portable MUT." She held it up and smiled wider. "Seasonal changes. The only times of the year I get to visit."

Without any signal or cue, the quad just simultaneously leaned in for one big group hug.

A hug they'd never thought would have again.

Suddenly, everything was perfect.

_~The End~  
_

* * *

**It**

**Is**

**Finally**

**Over**

**Now it's time for my final goodbyes:**

**Goodbye to you readers that have stuck by this fanfic til the very end.**

**Goodbye to Divergent, an OC I never thought I'd write a fanfic about, but I did anyway.**

**Very late goodbye to Penn Zero and the show, which ended way before. But I'm glad I finally got to finish what I started and I'm happy such a perky character inspired me to write.**

**Goodbye to writing for the fanfic, to writing about Verge and her adventures with Penn, and everything in-between.**

**I said my thanks, but I'll say them again.**

**Thank you all.**

**Thank you thank you thank you.**

**Every supporter has truly helped me in every way. **

**Hope you guys continue to stick around for any possible fanfics I may write in the future.**

**And so, for now, this is Ridaa.**

**Signing off~**


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